Always and Forever:The Third Sequel: Still The One
by Sunkissed Gurl
Summary: This is the third fic in a series about Charlotte and Cooper raising their family. This fic will make you smile and tug at your heart strings. Watch Charlotte and Cooper navigate through life with their children and grandchildren.
1. Chapter 1

_**Authors note: This is the third story in the Always and Forever series based on the characters Charlotte and Cooper from Private Practice.**_

_**Disclaimer - I do not own Charlotte, Cooper or any of the regulars from Private Practice. I just like to play with them but I'm proud to own their children (Andie, Chase, Noah and Drew) and grandchildren (Harper, Brayden and the rest). =)**_

_**The first fic in the series - ALWAYS and FOREVER- covers the first years of Charlotte and Cooper's married life and the start of their family.**_

_**The second fic- ALWAYS and FOREVER: The Sequel: Growing Pains- covers Charlotte and Cooper as parents of teenagers on their way to becoming young adults.**_

_**The third fic- ALWAYS and FOREVER : The Third Sequel : Still the One - covers Charlotte and Cooper as parents and grandparents now. They are definitely not going to be boring grandparents. Lots of good times and angst await you in this newest fic.**_

_**Special props go out to one of my awesome reader/reviewer's -Amy Hale. You are ALL awesome but Amy gave me the idea for this third fic. The prologue begins with a scene in a cemetery. The following chapter takes place five years earlier. The story will cover what happened over those five years to lead up until the cemetery scene. And there is a lot to cover, some of it will tug at your hearts and some of it will make you laugh but mostly it will entertain you.**_

_**To clear up any confusion, I will use Harper as a time reference. In the prologue she is 12 years old. In the following chapter she is 7. We will watch her grow older along with everyone else over the next five years until we end up at the prologue. There will be one chapter to follow the prologue scene to close up the story and then an epilogue that takes place a few years later. I hope that makes it clear for y'all. If you have any questions feel free to send me a DM. **_

_**Here we go- Hold on! It's going to be a long, twisty and bumpy ride. =)**_

* * *

_**ALWAYS & FOREVER **_

_**Third Sequel- Still The One.**_

Charlotte and Cooper sit on a bench in the cemetery while Harper and her two younger brothers run in circles, playing tag, around them. Chase stands in front of them, nervously waiting with his hands in his pockets. "Here she comes." Cooper points to a blonde slender figure walking in the cemetery entrance. An older gentleman and small child follow behind her.

Tess approaches Chase and his parents. "Hello." She says to them all. "This is a bit awkward. Isn't it?"

Chase's eyes light up at the sight of her. "It's great to see you." He takes his hand out of his pocket to shake with Tess.

The older gentleman and a small boy of about four years approach them now. Tess turns around. "Dad, can you believe we're finally meeting up with Chase Freedman and his parents again? It's been so long."

The older gentleman nods. Chase extends his hand out to greet him but the older man keeps his hands behind his back.

Cooper stands up from the bench followed by Charlotte. "Mr. Powers. It's nice to see you again." Cooper extends his hand out. Tess's father returns the gesture. "It's nice to see you again, Dr. Freedman."

Charlotte also shakes hands with Tess's father. "I'm sorry about your wife. I'm sorry we missed the funeral."

"Thank you." Tess's father shakes Charlotte's hand. "It's been hard on our family."

"Yes" Cooper agrees. "A death in the family takes a toll on everyone. We know all about that."

Chase looks down at the small boy with the brown hair and blue eyes, clutching a Thomas the Train in his hand. "Hello."

The mini-Chase looks up at him. "Hi."

"I see you like Thomas the Train?" Chase asks the boy.

"Yes." The little boy nods, wondering why this strange man is talking to him. Harper and her younger brothers stare at the boy.

Tess looks at her father. "Dad, Chase and I need to talk. Would you mind taking Brayden to the park next door to play? We shouldn't be long."

"Fine." Mr. Powers nods.

"Mind if Charlotte and I come along with you?" Cooper asks Tess's dad. "Our grandchildren would love to play with Brayden."

"That's up to Tess." Mr. Powers answers.

"It's fine, dad. Brayden should get to know his cousins."

Charlotte and Cooper follow Mr. Powers to the park with the four children in tow.

Chase and Tess both take a seat on the bench now. "Why did you ask me to meet you at a cemetery?" Tess asks. "My father and I thought it was an odd place to meet."

Chase switches his gaze from Tess to a marble headstone about thirty feet in the distance. "I come here a lot."

"Why?" Tess shrugs, a bit baffled.

"Come with me, I'll show you." Chase gets up and leads Tess to the grave. Tess gasps, looking at the marble headstone. "I'm sorry." She tells Chase. "I had no idea."

"How would you know?" Chase shrugs.

"I can't believe it." Tess stares at the image sketched on the headstone. "What in the world happened?"

"It's a long story. I'll tell you all about that later, right now I want to talk about Brayden."

"Why did you call me asking to meet Brayden now?" Tess asks. "After almost five years?"

"I explained to you on the phone I just found the letter last week." Chase pulls an envelope out of his pocket. "If I would have read the letter five years ago, I would have been there for you. I would have been there for the birth of my son." Chase's eyes start to water.

"I thought you read the letter and chose _not_ to be there for me and Brayden." Tess's eyes start to water now too.

"I don't understand, Tess." Chase explains. "You know I've always wanted children. What would make you think I wouldn't want to be in Brayden's life?"

"First off, you didn't call me after I left you the letter…-"

Chase interrupts. "That's because I never saw the letter until last week."

"Second of all, I did come back three months later to talk to you, your momma told me you were engaged to Michelle. We dated for years, Chase, before you asked me to marry you but you got engaged to Michelle in three months?"

"It took us years to get engaged because we started dating when we were sixteen. We waited until we were out of medical school to get engaged. I got engaged to Michelle because you left me. You disappeared and I was lonely. I've haven't been alone since I was sixteen. I needed someone to fill the space after you left."

Tess raises her voice now to make it clear. "I left because you cheated on me when I was pregnant!"

Chase defends. "I didn't know you were pregnant. We were fighting at the time and I had a weak moment. I was wrong."

Tess swallows hard before speaking. "After I caught you cheating on me, I questioned if you ever loved me. I couldn't trust you so I left you my engagement ring and the letter, telling you I was pregnant. I said to meet me that Friday night at Giorgio's if you wanted to be a father to our baby, you never showed up."

"I found the ring lying on my desk but there was no letter." Chase sighs.

"We both know who took the letter." Tess shakes her head.

"I know now." Chase nods. "I'm sorry, Tess, but I never stopped loving you. I've been punished enough for cheating on you. I've missed out on the first four years of my son's life."

Tess nods with tears in her eyes. "Believe it or not, I was relieved when you called last week. I want Brayden to know you."

"I want to know him too, more than anything else in this world."

"Shall we go to the park so you can meet your son?"

"I'd love too." Chase beams. They take the five minute walk to the park, holding hands. It feels like they were never apart.

"Momma!" Brayden runs up to Tess. Cooper and Charlotte follow along with Tess's dad.

"I have someone I want you to meet, Bray-Bud." Tess picks the four year old up in her arms.

"Who, momma?" The bright blue eyed little boy asks.

She introduces Chase. "This is your daddy."

The little boy stares up at Chase with big blue eyes. "He's my daddy?"

Chase looks in his little boy's eyes. "Yes. _I'm _your daddy. I promise you that I'm your daddy for always and forever. Give me five." Chase holds his hand up, the little boy smacks it.

Tess tells her son. "And this is your grandma Charlotte and grandpa Cooper."

"Hi." Brayden hand slaps Charlotte.

"You look just like your daddy when he was your age." Charlotte gives the little boy a kiss on the cheek.

Cooper hand slaps the little boy. "It's nice to meet you, Brayden. I'm your other grandpa."

"I'm lucky, momma." Brayden looks up at Tess. "I have a grandma and two grandpa's"

"And cousins." Cooper tells him. "You see that blonde girl and those two little boys tagging along behind her?"

"Yes." Brayden nods.

"Those are your cousins."

"Can I go play with them, Momma?" Brayden asks Tess.

"Sure thing, Bray-Bud." Tess answers. "I'm gonna be sitting right here on the bench talking with your daddy."

Charlotte and Cooper sit with Tess's dad while they watch their grandchildren play.

* * *

The next chapter after this will start five years earlier.


	2. Chapter 2

_**CHAPTER 2-**__**Always and Forever-Still The One**_

* * *

Charlotte's holding Andie's right leg back at the knee while Nicky's holding up and pulling the left leg in. "Push!" Addison urges her. "Just one more push and this baby will be home free."

"Come on, Sweet Pea!" Charlotte offers her daughter some encouragment. "One more good push and this hell will be over."

Andie grips onto the birthing table with all the strength she can muster up. She manages to squeeze out one more strong push before dropping her head back down on the pillow in utter exhaustion.

"It's a boy!" Addison announces. "And he's a big one." Addison suctions out the newborn's nose and mouth.

Nicky beams, gazing at his newly born son. "That wasn't so bad, Belle. You were only in labor for four hours this time."

"Are you kidding me?" Andie scoffs. "You try having labor pains for four hours and see if you still say it's not so bad."

"I just meant compared to Harper and Charley, this time it went much faster." Nicky clarifies.

"It's her third baby." Addison tells Nicky. "That's usually how it works."

"That's good to hear." Nicky nods. "Next time you'll only be in labor for two hours."

"Bite your tongue." An exhausted, sweating, Andie snaps. "There isn't going to be a next time. This factory is closed."

"Aw, come on." Nicky teases. "We need to have at least four like your parents did."

Charlotte stands near Nicky while Addison guides him to cut the umbilical cord. "He is a big boy."

"He is." Nicky cuts the cord then watches the nurse take his son to the exam table. The newborn lets out his first cries as the nurse cleans him off and examines him.

"Is he healthy?" Nicky asks the nurse.

"His apgars are 10/10." The nurse replies. "They don't get any better than that."

Nicky counts ten fingers and ten toes while the nurse weighs the baby. After wrapping the infant up in a blue blanket the nurse hands the baby to Charlotte who's eagerly waiting nearby. "Here you go, Dr. King." Charlotte knows the nurse is handing her the baby first because of her Chief of Staff status. Charlotte feels a tinge of guilt knowing that Nicky is itchin' to hold his new son but she lets it fly and takes the baby from the nurse.

She gazes at the new life in her arms. "We finally have one that looks like you, Nicky."

"What does he look like, momma?" Andie calls out from her bed.

Charlotte carries the baby over to Andie. "He's got a full head of dark hair and an olive complexion like his father."

Andie studies her baby. "He does look like you, Nick, look at his nose and cheeks. You'd never known he just came out of _my_ body."

"It's about time." Nicky tells her. "Harper and Charley look like you and your momma. It's about time one of our children took after me."

Charlotte gets a text. "That's your father." She talks as she reads. "He wants to know if you had the baby yet. Harper's excited to know if she has a new brother or a sister."

"Uh..oh." Nicky swallows. "Harper's been praying every night before she goes to bed for a little sister. She's not going to be happy."

"Guess that means you'll have to have one more." Charlotte jests. "We can't have my granddaughter unhappy."

"Bite your tongue, momma. I had three younger brothers and survived all these years without a sister."

Charlotte quirks an eyebrow. "You're not gettin' a little sister out of me now."

"Now, that I'd like to see." Addison chortles out while she sutures Andie's episiotomy up. "I'll even give you free pre-natal care if you pull that one off, Charlotte."

"Put a cork in it, Montgomery." Charlotte cradles the newborn.

* * *

Cooper's sitting on the couch watching The Cartoon Network with seven year old Harper and her two year old brother, Charley. Tess and Chase sit on the floor nearby.

"Here it is." Cooper reads the text. "Andie had another boy. They even sent me a picture." Cooper passes his phone around for everyone to look at.

Harper grumps, folding her arms. "I wanted a sister. It's not fair."

"Aw, but he's so cute, Harper." Tess tries to cheer the seven year old up.

"It's not fair!" Harper stomps her foot. "Charley has a brother now and I _still_ don't have a sister."

Cooper's phone buzzes with another text. After reading it, he pulls Harper onto his lap. "It's okay, Munchkin, your dad sent me a text." Cooper shows it to seven year old Harper."He said to tell you not to worry, the next baby will be a girl."

Tess screws up her face. "They're discussing having another one already. This one hasn't been out of the womb ten minutes."

Cooper laughs. "I think its Nicky's idea. He wants a big family. Andie would have been fine with one or two."

"When can we go see momma?" Harper asks Cooper.

"We can go right now. By the time we get to the hospital your momma should be all settled in her room."

Cooper ruffles little two-year-old Charley's red hair. "Do you want to go up to the hospital with me and Harper to visit your momma?"

The little red-headed boy pulls his thumb out of his mouth to nod yes before sticking it back in his mouth.

"Okay, then." Cooper stands up, taking the mini -Charlotte by one hand and two year old, Charley, with the other hand, leading them out the door.

"What's wrong?" Tess asks Chase.

"Nothing." Chase sulks.

"There's something wrong. It's written all over your face. Aren't you happy for Andie and Nick?"

"I'm happy for my sister but I feel like _we're_ on a fast road to nowhere."

Tess furrows her brow. "What on Earth are you talking about?"

"My sister just had her third kid and we haven't even had one. Hell, we're not even married yet." Chase complains.

"Because we decided to finish college and medical school before we got engaged." Tess reminds him.

"Right. We agreed to that but now we're both done with med school, we're almost done with our residencies and we don't even have a wedding date set yet."

"Jeepers, Chase." Tess sighs. "We're not even finished with residency yet. What's the rush?"

"The rush is my sister just had her third baby and we don't even have one."

"We're not in a competition with your sister. Andie and Nick have a completely different lifestyle. They're not doctors. They didn't spend years in medical school like we did. We deserve a break now." Tess tells him.

"Planning the wedding and setting the date is supposed to be fun." Chase tells Tess. "Why do you need a break from that?"

"I didn't mean I needed a break from that. I just want a couple of months to do nothing, to have nothing to think about besides my residency before we start to plan the wedding. Is that so hard to understand?"

"I must want to get married more than you do." Chase gets up and picks up his keys.

"Where are you going?" Tess asks.

"I'm going to go visit my sister at the hospital, maybe she'll let me hold her baby." Chase grumbles. "At this rate, I'll be an old man before I hold a baby of my own."

"_You're_ acting like a big baby." Tess calls after him.

"If _we_ had a baby I wouldn't need to act like one!" Chase walks toward the door.

"You're being ridiculous!" Tess yells before he slams the door on the way out.

"What's going on?" Thirteen year old Drew walks in the house. "Did you and my brother have a fight?" He asks Tess.

"Not a fight." Tess tells Drew. "A disagreement."

"About what?" Drew drops his backpack from school on the couch.

"Chase wants to plan the wedding and get married as soon as possible." Tess shrugs. "I don't see the rush. I want to finish my residency and establish my career before we start having children. I think it's better than rushing everything, don't you?"

"Yeah." Drew nods. "I don't know what my brother's problem is. My parents didn't get married and start having kids until my dad was almost forty."

Tess responds. "I think Chase feels some kind of competition with your sister and she just had her third baby."

"Did Andie have her baby yet?" Drew asks.

"Yeah, she had another boy. Everyone went to go see them at the hospital."

"Oh," Drew thinks out loud. "Harper's not going to like that. She wants a little sister."

"Kids have to learn early that they can't always get what they want or they grow up to be big spoiled babies." Tess shakes her head.

"Are you talking about Chase?" Drew asks.

Tess nods. "Chase is a great guy and I love him more than life but he's being a baby about rushing the wedding and having kids right away. I have to find a way to show him it's better to wait. It always turns out badly if you juggle more balls then you can handle, one always gets dropped and _all_ our balls are too important to drop. Do you follow what I'm saying?" Tess asks Drew.

"Yep and I have an idea."

"What?" Tess asks.

"Take Chase to the circus and show him the juggler. Say one ball is your job, one ball is his job, one ball is your marriage and the other balls are your kids and see which one the juggler drops first."

Tess rolls her eyes. "With my luck it'll be an expert juggler and Chase will end up wanting five kids if the juggler can manage all those balls at once."

Drew laughs. "I better call my momma and find out about my new nephew. Let's see how many balls Andie and Nicky can juggle before they start dropping them."

"You're a funny little man." Tess throws a piece of popcorn at Drew.

Drew catches, chews and swallows it before he answers. "Funny, yes, _little_, no."

"Sorry. " Tess apologizes. She always forgets how sensitive Drew is about being the smallest boy in his class. Chase is tall like Cooper. They keep telling Drew he'll shoot up and grow tall one day like Noah did but Drew's thirteen and still waiting for his growth spurt.


	3. Chapter 3

_**CHAPTER 3**_

* * *

The group of young residents sit around the long table in the conference room of The Surfside Wellness Clinic. Most of the senior doctors including Charlotte and Cooper have recently stopped seeing patients but they oversee the young residents care of their own patients. Amelia, Jolie and Addison are the only senior doctors still currently taking patients along with the new residents.

Lucas speaks first. "Amelia was called in to St. Ambrose to do emergency surgery and it's Jolie's day off so it's just us here today. "

"What about your mom?" Chase sips his coffee before asking Danielle.

"She had a late night delivering twins, she said she'll pop in this afternoon if we need her." Danielle flips through her papers. "My first patient of the day is...-"

Lucas holds his hand halfway up to stop her from talking. "Wait a minute, before we get to that we have to decide who's going to cover Amelia's neuro patients today."

Chase sips his coffee. "I could cover any pediatric cases and you two can take the adults."

Lucas shakes his head. "I'm already booked solid for the morning."

Danielle looks up from her paperwork. "I'm psych, I can't treat neuro patients, we'll have to cancel Amelia's patients then."

"Way to lose business." Lucas huffs. "We can't keep doing that."

Chase looks at his watch. "I'll call my parents and get one of them to come in and cover Amelia's patients."

"Or Sam can do it." Danielle recommends "Isn't it his turn to be on call if we need help this week?"

"I'll call Sam." Lucas volunteers. "But we're going to have to start interviewing some new docs when we fully take over this place. Now that most of our parents have retired we need more help."

Chase responds. "If you can wait until my brother graduates med school. He wants to specialize in neurosurgery. We could hire him to do his residency here so Amelia could retire."

"But Noah's only in his first year of med school then he has to do his surgical residency at a hospital. It'll be a few years before he can work here and do we really want to hire a brand new neurosurgeon? Wouldn't it be better to hire one with experience?" Danielle asks the group.

"Our parents hired us to work here as residents until they all retired." Lucas tells Danielle. "It's only fair we do the same and hire Noah and Marley."

Danielle rebuttals "I'm just looking out for the practice. We're all new in our fields. We're going to need to hire some experienced doctors if we want to survive."

"But we're going to need a neurosurgeon and an Ob-Gyn." Chase tells Danielle. "Your mom and Amelia want to retire soon. I think we should wait and hire Noah and Marley when they finish their residencies."

"What about Tess? What would it take to get her to leave her OB residency at St. Ambrose and come work for us?" Danielle asks.

Chase taps his pen on the notepad in front of him. "I already discussed it with her. She's getting more experience and more patients at St. Ambrose. Once she's finished with her residency there she can come here and work with us."

A pretty young nurse enters the conference room, addressing Danielle. "Dr. Montgomery, your first patient of the day, Mrs. Anderson, is here. She says she has to be at work in a half hour so if you could try and get in to see her as soon as possible...-"

Danielle cuts her off. "Thank you, Michelle, tell Mrs. Anderson that I'll be in to see her in a minute." Danielle rolls her eyes before telling Lucas and Chase. "Mrs. Anderson is delusional, she doesn't even have a job."

Lucas chuckles. "You wanted to do a psychiatry residency. Have fun with Mrs. Anderson."

Chase asks Danielle. "Is that a new nurse? I've never seen her before."

"I know, she's hot right?" Lucas shares a grin with Chase.

"Jolie just hired her." Danielle playfully slaps Lucas's arm. "I saw you checking her out, you're a married man."

"I was just looking at her uniform." Lucas jokes. "It was cute."

"She's wearing srubs." Danielle raises her eyebrows at Lucas. "You're not fooling me, my love."

"Ha, ha." Chase laughs. "Only I can check her out, I'm not married yet."

"You're engaged." Danielle tells him. "It's the same thing."

"Not really." Chase shrugs. "Tess isn't willing to commit to a date."

"Why not?" Lucas asks. "You've been engaged over year."

"She says she wants to concentrate on her job for a while before we plan the wedding, meanwhile my clock is ticking."

Danielle laughs. "Your clock is ticking?"

"Yep. My sister just had her third kid, you guys have a kid. I want to start a family too." Chase complains.

"Oh, I can't wait to see Andie's new baby." Danielle rambles on. "My mother delivered him. You need to talk Tess into working for us so my mom can fully retire and spend more time with her granddaughter."

"I can't convince Tess to set a wedding date. How can I convince her to work for us?" Chase informs.

"Anyway, tell Andie I'm going to stop by after work to see the baby." Danielle sips her coffee.

The young nurse with the bouncy brown curls comes back in the room. "Dr. Montgomery, Mrs. Anderson is getting agitated that you're making her wait so long."

"Tell her I'll be there in a minute, Michelle." Danielle looks over her notes.

Michelle responds. "I already told her that ten minutes ago, if I tell her again she's going to punch me."

"Ha, ha." Chase laughs.

"You think I'm kidding?" Michelle looks pointedly at Chase. "Have you met Mrs Anderson?"

"No, sorry." Chase extends his hand out. "I'm Dr. Chase Freedman, I'm doing my pediatric's residency here."

"I'm Michelle Williams R.N. This is my first day here." She shakes Chase's hand.

"I'd hate to see you get punched on your first day. I'll talk to Mrs. Anderson for you."

"Never mind." Danielle tells them. "I'm going to my office right now."

Michelle follows Danielle to her office.

Lucas raises his eyebrows to Chase. "That new nurse could be a super model. If I wasn't married…-."

"I know." Chase cuts him off. "If I wasn't engaged...-"

* * *

Tess rings the bell at the Freedman house. Charlotte answers. "Come on in, Tess. The gang's all here."

Tess strides into the living room and hugs Andie hello. She hands her a giftbox wrapped in baby blue wrapping paper. "Congratulations on baby number three."

"Meet Michael Nikolas Poulos." Andie lifts up the dark haired newborn. "Meet your almost Auntie Tess."

Cooper's sitting on the floor doing a puzzle with seven year old Harper. "When are you and my son setting a date for that wedding of yours?"

"Soon, Dr. Freedman, soon." Tess responds.

"Don't pressure her, Cooper." Charlotte takes Michael Nikolas from Andie to feed him. "You go talk to Tess, I'll feed the baby."

Cooper continues. "I'm not pressuring anyone. They've been engaged for over a year. How long are they going to wait to set a wedding date?" Cooper looks for a puzzle piece on the floor.

Charlotte tells Tess. "Don't mind him. He just wants another grandchild."

Andie looks at Cooper. "Haven't I given you enough, daddy?"

Little Harper answers for Cooper. "No, momma. You still owe me a sister. You gave Charley a brother so you hafta give me a sister."

Andie tells her seven year old daughter with the long blonde hair and big hazel eyes, "It doesn't work that way, rabbit, even if I had another baby it could be another boy."

Tess asks. "Where's Charley?"

"He's having his nap." Cooper answers.

Andie and Tess go into the kitchen to talk. "You're so lucky to have your parents around to help you with the kids."

"They're retired now." Andie makes a pot of coffee and tells Tess. "The kids keep them hopping. That's why they want you and Chase to hurry up and get married and start having babies."

"I'm only having one, maybe two, tops." Tess sits down at the table.

"I thought you and Chase wanted a big family?"

"Chase still does but I'm an Ob-Gyn now. I don't want to have to keep taking leave whenever I have a kid and I don't want my kids raised by a nanny either."

Andie shrugs. "My parents will be happy to watch them for you."

Tess cackles. "True, your kids spend more time here, at your parent's house, than at your house."

Andie shrugs. "Drew's thirteen, he doesn't want to hang with my parents and Noah's away at med school so I let the kids come here and keep my parents company."

Tess chuckles. "It also conveniently gives you and Nicky the alone time you need to keep making more babies."

Andie rolls her eyes at that. "Can you believe Nicky wants one more?"

"Do you?" Tess asks.

"Hell no! Three's enough." Andie scoffs "I don't know what I'd do if I didn't have my parents to help me out."

"Nicky can be persistant." Tess tell her. "I have a feeling you'll be preggers again soon."

"What about you?" Andie asks. "Why haven't you set a date for the wedding yet?"

"I wanted to get into the groove at St. Ambrose first before planning a wedding."

"Have you gotten in the groove yet?" Andie pours them each a cup of coffee.

"I have. I'm going to look at the calendar soon and start thinking about dates. I was thinking about having the wedding this summer."

"That'll make Chase and my dad happy."

Tess warns. "But I want to wait a few years before getting pregnant. I think it's best to enjoy each other as a married couple before having kids right away and we need to establish our careers first."

"But," Andie says. "You and Chase have been together since you were sixteen. You guys have a house together. You've been living like a married couple the past few years, just without the legal paperwork."

"Still." Tess says. "I want to get my career established before having a baby."

"I guess." Andie changes the subject. "Don't forget Michael's Christening is in three months. Keep it in mind when planning for your wedding. Everybody's coming home for it; Noah and Marley, Lila and Dylan."

"I can't wait to see everyone again." Tess smiles. "It's been so long since we had a party where everyone was together in one room."

"Broken Spell will be playing." Andie informs.

"What a lucky baby boy to have a rock band play at his Christening."

Andie sips her coffee "It helps that his father is the lead singer. Nicky's going to play soft rock at the Christening."

"You think I could get them to play at my wedding?" Tess asks.

"Just set a date and they'll be there."

Charley wakes up from his nap, crying. "I better go see if my parents need help." Andie rises to her feet. "They're out numbered now. There's three grandchildren and only two of them."

"Don't forget they raised four kids." Tess reminds.

"Why do I keep forgetting that?" Andie grins as she walks out of the kitchen.


	4. Chapter 4

_**CHAPTER 4**_

* * *

The Freedman family and friends gather at Giorgio's for the Christening of Charlotte and Cooper's third grandchild. Broken Spell plays soft pop-rock style music for the event.

Andie strolls around carrying Michael Nikolas in his white Christening gown. Harper Ava is wearing a light blue party dress. She holds holds onto her grandma, Charlotte's hand, while Cooper holds two year old Charley in his arms. Charley rests his head on Cooper's shoulder, sucking vigorously on his thumb.

"Congratulations, again!" Violet and Pete approach Charlotte and Cooper. Violet toussles Charley's red hair. "I love it." She smiles. Charley turns his head the other way facing into Cooper's neck. "Is he shy?" Violet asks.

"He doesn't know you." Cooper replies. "You spend half the year in Maine."

"And we love it there." Pete adds. "We've got a home on the east coast and a home on the west, what can be better than that?"

"Thank you for coming home for this." Cooper hugs Violet and shakes Pete's hand. "How is the second home in Maine coming along?"

"We're finally living the dream. It's so beautiful in the fall when the leaves are changing and picturesque in the winter." Violet beams. "You'll have to come visit us and see it for yourselves."

"Yes." Charlotte nods. "Noah told us it was *_wicked*__ w_hen he and Marley visited you. It seems lately whenever my son is on a shool break he chooses to stay on the east coast."

"Don't worry." Pete grins. "We'll take care of your boy if he decides to stay on the east coast."

Amelia and Sheldon walk over to greet everyone.

"So, I understand you're one of the last of us old-timers still working at the practice?" Pete asks Amelia.

"Yep. It's Surfside Wellness Clinic now. It's just me, Jolie and we call in Addison in if we have an interesting Ob-Gyn case."

Addison joins the group with a martini in her hand. "They can't get rid of me, can't have my mind to go to mush if I stop working completely."

Sheldon informs Pete. "Lucas is doing an excellent job running things when Amelia and Jolie can't be around. He's a hard worker."

Cooper adds. "Surfside Wellness will do great with Chase, Lucas and Danielle running it one day."

Charlotte sighs. "And hopefully one day Noah and Marley will come back home to work with them."

"Speak of the devils." Cooper gestures to Noah and Marley walking in the front entrance of Giorgio's.

Charlotte hurries over to Noah, giving him a tight hug. "Relax, momma. You do know I'm staying at your house for a few days while I'm in town for the Christening? We'll have plenty of time to catch up."

Marley hugs Cooper. "Congratulations on becoming a grandpa again."

"Thank you. I can't wait until you and Noah start having babies." Cooper hugs Marley.

"Dad!" Noah's face turns red. "Can you hold off with the baby talk until we're out of med school?"

Charlotte warns. "Don't rush them, Coop."

Broken Spell starts jammimg on stage. "That's my poppa!" Harper yells out, making sure everyone knows. "That's my poppa!"

Drew and Sarah head out onto the dance floor along with Dylan and Lila. Seven year old Harper bops around to her father's music. Danielle and Lucas's five year old daughter joins her. "Do it like this!" Harper instructs five year old Rosie.

Rosie shakes her light brown hair around while wiggling to the music, copying Harper. "Am I doing it right, Harper?"

"Now do this." Harper shakes her whole body up and down.

"K" Rosie copies, wiggling up and down to the music while whipping her hair around.

Pete laughs. "Lucas and Nicky are going to have to buy a shotgun to keep the boys away when those two girls are older."

Cooper grins. "Paybacks a bitch."

"Where did Harper learn to dance like that?" Marley asks Noah as they walk onto the dance floor.

"Uh...her father is the lead singer of the band. How can she _not_ dance like that?" Noah reminds.

Marley watches Harper bounce around the dance floor now. "No wonder they all call her rabbit. I feel like we're missing out on so much of her life since we've been away at school. She's getting so big."

"I guess." Noah shrugs.

"Don't you miss your family here in LA?" Marley gets in position to dance with Noah.

"How does that saying go?" Noah thinks. "I love my close family as long as they're in another city."

Marley laughs, looking at her own mother dancing with her father, Cole. "Ain't that the truth."

Tess walks in with Chase now. "Look at Harper go!" Tess points her out on the dance floor to Chase. "Nicky's teaching her how to move like a rock star."

"Yep." Chase nods. "Harper's a daddy's girl. I'd love to have a daddy's girl one day."

"Oh would you stop already." Tess playfully nudges Chase.

Andie over hears them and tells Tess. "Harper loves to go in to work with Nicky and watch Broken Spell practice. She's definitely her daddy's little girl."

"Who's that woman in the red dress out on the dance floor?" Tess gestures to a pretty brunette with long bouncy curls.

"I don't know." Andie replies.

"That's Michelle." Chase tells them.

"Who's Michelle?" Tess asks.

"She's a new nurse at Surfside Wellness."

"Oh?" Andie asks. "Is that the one you were telling Nicky about? You said she was a huge fan of Broken Spell?"

"She'd be the one." Chase smiles, watching Michelle dance. "Nicky said to invite her down to watch them play."

"Nicky's good to his fans." Andie tells. "He'd give any one of them the shirt off his back."

Chase laughs. "He has. I've seen him take off his shirt and throw it into the crowd during his concerts"

Andie shakes her head, watching Nicky perform on stage. "My husband is a crowd pleaser."

"And his fans love him for it but at least you know he's in your bed at night." Tess smirks.

Andie watches Michelle rock out to Nicky's band. "She's beautiful." Andie Comments. "Why's she a nurse? She could be a supermodel."

"Michelle may be beautiful but she's not shallow about her looks." Chase tells them. "She's a dedicated nurse and a hard worker."

"You're obviously a big fan of hers." Tess ribs Chase. She trusts him, she's not the least bit concerned about her fiance being attracted to the pretty new nurse he works with.

"Do you want to dance?" Chase asks Tess. He takes her by the hand to the dance floor.

After ten minutes of dancing Tess starts to feel a little light headed. "I'm going to sit this one out." She tells him.

"Are you okay? He asks.

"Yeah, I rushed home from work to change for the party. I haven't ate anything since this morning. It's catching up to me."

"Okay, go grab something to eat." He gives her a sweet kiss on the forehead. "Do you mind if I ask Michelle to dance? She doesn't know many people here."

"Not a problem." Tess steals a kiss from him before sitting down at a table near the dance floor. She grabs a roll out of a bread basket on the table and bites into it to combat the light headedness. She watches Chase dance with Michelle for a few minutes before she decides to look at the calendar on her phone in search of a wedding date. As she looks at the calendar she just notices that she's four days late. She's never really been this late before, but she's normally on the pill so her periods are regular. She stopped taking it two months ago at her doctor's suggestion to give her body a break since she's been on it for years. She's been using condoms with Chase but remembers the condoms broke on more than one occasion this past month because Chase bought the wrong size. Now, she's worried. She's not going to be able to focus on anything else until she knows for sure. She walks up to Andie. "I got called into the hospital. I have to step out a minute but I'll be back as soon as I can." Tess grabs another buttered dinner roll to eat off of Andie's table.

"No, problem." Andie tells her.

"Hopefully, I'll be back before anyone notices I'm gone but if they do can you explain?" Tess bites into the roll. She doesn't want to drive if she's light headed.

"No, problem." Andie watches Tess leave.

After about five minutes, Chase walks back to the table. He looks around for Tess. Michelle follows him. Chase asks if anyone knows where Tess is, nobody knows. He finally asks Andie. "Oh yeah." Andie tells him. "Tess got called into work. She said she'll try not to be too long."

"Thanks." Chase sighs and Andie walks off.

"What's wrong?" Michelle notices the grimace on Chase's face.

"I'm just thinking if this is how life's going to be once Tess and I get married." Chase takes a seat at the table.

Michelle sits down next to him. "Spill it, bud" She smiles and when she does, it does something to Chase. She's so beautiful. He tries to figure out what it is that makes him feel butterflies in his belly when she smiles. Is it her straight white teeth with the red lipstick or is it her green eyes? They seem to twinkle. It could be her distinct jawline or her high cheekbones. He stares at her.

"I said, spill, bud."

Chase snaps out of it. "Okay. It's just that whenever there's a party Tess gets called into work."

Michelle opens a beer bottle and takes a sip. "Job hazard. She's doing her Ob-Gyn residency."

"Yeah but..." Chase explains. "She could ask someone to cover for her on special occasions like this."

"She's doing her residency." Michelle tells him. "Same as you are...you know how it is; you need to prove yourself. How would it look if you called in sick a lot?"

"I'd look like a slacker." Chase watches Michelle sip on the beer botttle. "But she could have got someone to cover for her, she didn't need to call in sick."

"Want some?" She hands him the bottle, he takes a sip before giving it back to her.

Michelle runs her finger around the rim of the bottle to wipe off his germs. He watches her finger work it's way around the tip of the beer bottle. It looks so hot, he thinks. "Chase are you paying attention to me?"

"What did you say?" He snaps out of it and looks back up at her face.

"I said if Tess didn't show up or got someone to cover for every party she went to she'd look like a slacker. Who would hire her after residency?"

"We would at Surfside Wellness." Chase tells her.

"Still, she wants to do a good job and show up when they call her. There's nothing wrong with that. I respect people like that." Michelle takes another sip of the beer.

Chase watches her lips wrap around the beer bottle again. He explains, "I'm not saying I want Tess to be a slacker. I just wish she'd make her personal life as much a priority as her work life. For example" He says. "We've been engaged for over a year and she won't sit down with me and pick out a date for our wedding. She wants to wait a while longer before we start planning the wedding."

"Are you in a hurry to get married?" Michelle rolls the beer bottle between her palms.

Chase sighs. "My sister just had her third kid and I haven't had _one_ yet. You know how that makes me feel?"

"Sort of." Michelle shrugs. "My younger sister recently had her first baby. She's three years younger than I am and I don't even have a boyfriend. I'm no where close to having a kid unless I went to a sperm bank."

Chase laughs. "A beautiful girl like you shouldn't have any trouble finding a boyfriend. You must be picky."

"I am. I got burned a couple of times so I'm super careful about who I date."

"Mind if I ask how you got burned?" Chase takes her beer from her and sips it. He wants to watch her finger the rim of the bottle again. He hands it back to her.

"I met my first serious boyfriend in college. He was my first everything. I fell in love fast and hard until it all went sour."

"Did he cheat on you?" Chase asks.

"No." Michelle swirls her finger around the tip of the bottle again. "He liked to hit me."

Chase is surprised. "Why would you date a dude that hit you?"

"It didn't start out that way. Everything was great until I called his best friend an asshole for doing something stupid. That's the first time he slapped me. I blamed myself for talking bad about his best friend. The next time, I criticized something his mother did and he punched me, he gave me a bloody nose."

"And let me guess." Chase says. "You thought it was your fault for saying something bad about his momma."

"Never talk bad about anyone's momma." Michelle warns Chase. "That's a lesson I learned. Anyway, it escalated, he started throwing me up against walls, kicking me."

"Is that when you finally broke it off?"

"No. I broke it off after he beat me up so bad I ended up in the ER. The doctor told me if I didn't get away from my boyfriend he'd end up killing me. I went for counseling and drummed up the courage to break up with him. I had to get an order of protection against him." Michelle shakes her head. "It was a nightmare."

"Was he the only guy you ever loved?" Chase asks.

"I fell in love again a year later with a guy named Benn. Benn was perfect. He treated me like his queen." Michelle tells Chase. "I don't think I'll ever find a guy like Benn again."

"What happened to Benn?"

"Promise not to laugh at me or think I'm an idiot?" Michelle looks at him with her green eyes.

"Cross my heart." Chase makes a cross over the left side of his chest.

"After dating Benn for two years he dumped me, turns out he was married."

"Wow!" Chase exclaims. "How did you date him for two years and not know he was married?"

"He rented an apartment where we would get together, turns out he also had a house he shared with his wife but in all fairness to myself, Benn and his wife were having marital problems at the time he started the affair with me. They were seperated a good part of the time we dated so we spent a lot of time together at the apartment. I had no reason to suspect he had a wife or a house. He introduced me to a few of his friends and they never let on that he was married."

"How did you find out he was married?"

Michelle sighs. "He ended up telling me himself. His wife was pregnant, he wanted to give their marraige another shot for the baby's sake so I got the boot."

"Why was he still sleeping with his wife if he was with you?" Chase shrugs. "I mean he had to sleep with her to get her pregnant."

"He told me it was a momentary lapse of judgement that made him have sex with her one more time and he ended getting her pregnant."

"You believed him?"

"Benn wouldn't lie to me. He's a stand up guy. I believe it happened the way he said."

Chase shakes his head and screws up his nose. "He cheated on his wife with _you_ and then got his wife pregnant, then he dumped you because of it. That's _not_ a stand up guy."

Michelle defends her ex-boyfriend. "I know it sounds bad but if you met him you'd see what I mean. He's best guy I know."

"It sounds like you're still in love with Benn."

"Maybe." Michelle shrugs. "So, you see why I'm picky about the men I date?"

"I do see and you should be."

Michelle lets out a long breath while fingering her beer bottle. "Sometimes I think I'll never meet my Mr. Right. I'll end up having to go to a sperm bank to have kids."

"You want kids?" Chase asks.

"Of course, kids are what life is all about. It's the circle of life." Michelle sips her beer.

Nicky's band plays '_What_ _a Wonderful World_' for the Christening. "Do you want to dance?" Chase asks.

"I love this song." Michelle gets up. "It's one of the most beautiful songs of the century."

"Actually, it's from the last century." Chase tells her. "I think it came out in the 1990's"

"You know what I mean." Michelle playfully hits Chase in the arm earning her a chuckle.

Chase puts his arm out and leads her to the dance floor.

* * *

Tess drives across the street to a convenience store. She picks up the first pregnancy test she spots and pays for it. "Do you have a bathroom?" She asks the clerk.

"Follow the sign." The clerk tells her. Tess follows the sign for the restroom. She urinates on the stick and waits. Soon her phone buzzes and she looks at the results. "Damn." She says. "We're not even married yet." Now she really has to pick a wedding date soon and she probaby can't wait until the summer either or she may be showing in her wedding dress. She gets back in the car and drives back to Giorgio's. She decides that she's not going to tell Chase tonight. This is Andie and Nicky's party for their baby. She's never been the type to steal the show. She'll wait until the morning to tell Chase that they have their own baby on the way. She's sure he'll be over the moon. She walks back into the party room and spots Chase slow dancing with Michelle on the dance floor. She sits back down at the table and watches them.

After the dance is over Chase and Michelle walk over to Tess. Chase introduces them. "Tess this is Michelle, I work with her."

"Michelle, this is Tess, my fiance." The two women exchange hand shakes.

"I'm going to get a beer." Chase tells Tess. "Do you want one?"

Tess suddenly realizes she can't drink any alcohol. "No thanks."

"Do you want something else to drink?" Chase asks. "A dirty martini?"

"Water is fine." Tess has to think up a reason. "Just in case I get called back into the hospital, I shouldn't drink."

Chase sighs and looks at Michelle. "Can I get you another beer?"

"I'll go with you." Michelle strolls to the bar with Chase.

"See what I mean?" Chase says. "She won't even relax and have a drink at the party because of work."

"Aw, cut her some slack." Michelle defends. "If I ever was pregnant and in labor I'd want a dedicated doctor like her around."

"Yeah, you're right. I know she's a good doctor. I just want her to be mine."

"She is yours. You're engaged."

"She's not mine. She's a slave to her work."

Chase and Michelle order their beers and talk at the bar some more. Tess sits at the table, talking to Noah and Marley.

* * *

Sarah and Drew sit outside on the steps of Giorgio's talking. Mary, Cooper's biological mother steps outside. "How are you kids doing?"

"We're good."Drew answers. "Just getting some fresh air."

"In a couple of years you two can come work for me if you need some spending money. How's that sound?

"It sounds good, grandma"

"Sounds good to me too." Sarah answers.

"Well, this old lady is going to take her dancing feet inside and make sure everyone's having a good time." Mary walks back through the front door.

"I'm going to run this place one day." Drew tells Sarah.

"Why do you say that?" Sarah asks.

"My grandma owns it. She's getting older."

"She looks great for her age. Did you see her moving on the dance floor?" Sarah compliments.

"Not bad for an eighty-two year old woman. I guess that's where Nicky inherited his moves if his grandma can still rock like that in her eighties."

"I think she's just a young soul. She's happy to be alive. She's got all her grandchildren and now great grandchildren to live for and this restaurant, which is doing great." Sarah tells Drew.

Drew nods and swallows before asking. "So, do you want to go out with me?"

"Out where?" Sarah looks around.

"Like on a date. My parents can drop us off at the mall, we can see a movie." Drew suggests.

Sara scrunches her lips together, this is awkward. "I'm not attracted to you like that, Drew."

Drew looks dejected. His gaze shoots directly to the floor. "Is it because I'm an inch shorter than you? My father says I'm due for a growth spurt. I'll probably be taller than you in a few months."

"It's not that, Drew." Sarah explains. "You're my best friend, you're like my brother. We grew up together since we were in diapers. I don't want to be your girlfriend."

"Okay." Drew nods.

"Are you mad at me?" Sarah asks.

"I mad at myself."

"Why?"

"I just asked you out on a date and got rejected. How am I supposed to feel?"

"It's because you're like my brother. I already told you that. I can't go out with my brother." Sarah defends.

"Let me ask you this, if you didn't know me all these years, would you consider dating me?"

"Yeah" Sarah shrugs. "Why not?"

"Me being shorter than you wouldn't bother you?"

"You're too hung up on height, if you ask me." Sarah gets up and rejoins the party, leaving Drew sitting there.

* * *

Violet sits down next to Andie. Charlotte's sitting at the next table feeding the baby. "Taking a little break?" Violet asks Andie as she watches Charlotte feed the new baby. Cooper holds two year-old Charley on his lap, sitting next to Charlotte.

"Yeah, my parents really love my kids."

"You're lucky to have them here in LA to help. I think Lucas and Danielle wish Pete and I would live here all year to help out with Rosie."

Andie nods. "Maybe they'd have another kid then. They're both so busy with the practice and taking care of Rosie."

"Uncle Pete and I want to enjoy our retirement while we're still healthy."

"I can't blame you. You're lucky to be alive after you were shot at Danielle and Lucas's engagement party. Does it feel weird to be back at Giorgio's?"

"It might if your grandmother didn't do so much to change it. It looks like a completely different restaurant with the huge salt water fish tank and all the changes she made."

"Yeah," Andie look around. "I hope to run this place one day."

"Don't you have enough on your plate between the kids and your job at the veterinary office?" Violet asks.

Andie shrugs. "My momma worked two jobs and had four kids plus I'm only working at the veterinary hospital part time right now. I can handle the restaurant."

"Running a restaurant is a full time job." Violet advises.

"I can do it." Andie tells Violet. "If my momma could run a hospital, work at the practice and take care of us, I can work part time as a veterinarian, take care of my kids and run a restaurant."

"You inherited your mother's ambition." Violet smiles before her gaze moves to Addison out on the dance floor with little Rosie. Addison twirls Rosie around.

Andie notices. "I think Rosie looks like you."

"You do?" Violet turns to look at Andie again. "I always thought she looked like Danielle."

"You can see a combination in her." Andie nods. "Why don't you go out there and dance with her?"

"No." Violet sighs. "She's having fun with her other grandmother. Uncle Pete and I are going to babysit for her tomorrow, knowing Addison she'll want to tag along." Violet does an eyeroll.

Andie chuckles a little. "It's hard to share but I think Addison expects Rosie to be her only grandchild. Danielle and Lucas don't want anymore kids so Rosie is her world, at least you have a chance for another grandchild with Lila."

"If I'm still alive by then." Violet sips her drink.

Cooper strolls over holding Charley. "Somebody wants their momma." He hands a tired Charley to Andie. Charley sucks his thumb and buries his head into his momma's chest, hiding from the strange lady.

Violet looks on with half a smile. "He's afraid of me."

"That's because you're big and scary." Cooper teases his old friend.

"I should come back more often before all the kids run away from me." Violet replies.

"You should." Cooper sits down next to his best friend with a big smile on his face.

"You look happy." Violet smiles back at him.

"I am. I'm living my dream." He looks around at Giorgio's, the party room is full of his family and friends.


	5. Chapter 5

_**CHAPTER 5**_

It's a beautiful sunny morning, the light hits Tess's face, waking her. She looks over at Chase's side of the bed, it's empty. He's already up and off to work. She's feeling a tad bit light headed so she dangles her feet over the side of the bed a minute before getting up to use the bathroom. The young blonde decides to do another pregnancy test to double check. Yep, a few minutes later a positive sign is staring her in the face. She decides to call in sick at her job today, something she has never done before but she's never been pregnant before either. Surely, Chase is going to be super excited and will want to take the day off too to celebrate. Maybe they'll do some wedding shopping or meet with a wedding planner since they're going to have to put this wedding together in the next few months before she starts showing. Tess stops at the deli to pick up an egg sandwich and coffee for herself and Chase. It's too early for morning sickness to be a problem. She's a little light headed but the food should take care of that. After she picks up the breakfast sandwiches she heads over to Surfside Wellness Center.

* * *

Chase walks into the office of Surfside Wellness, coffee in hand, briefcase in the other, sporting a sour look on his face.

"Good morning," A cheerful Michelle greets him in the hall.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Chase grumbles.

"What's wrong?" Michelle asks.

"Hangover? Not much sleep? I don't know." He shrugs as he walks into his office.

Michelle follows him. "Were you and Tess getting busy all night?" She asks. "You look beat."

"No." Chase answers, definitively. "Tess slept like a baby and all I could do was think about how rude it was for her to leave in the middle of my nephew's party to go to work." Here he goes again, Michelle thinks, she heard all about this last night. Chase continues to complain."She could have asked someone to cover for her. That's what everyone else does."

"Sit down and take off your jacket." Michelle gives him a gentle shove into his seat.

"Why?" Chase asks as he removes his jacket.

Michelle looks at her watch. "Your first patient is coming in half an hour. You can't look like this when they show up. I worked as a masseuse for a few months before I went to nursing school." She starts kneading her fingers into his shoulders. "It'll help you unwind before your patients come in. I've been told I have the magic touch."

Chase sips his coffee. "Who told you that?"

She continues to knead her fingers down his back. "Benn."

"Oh, that jerk you went out with that left you because he got his wife pregnant?" Chase scoffs. "He's the type that will tell you whatever you want to hear to see how far it'll get him."

"He's not a jerk, Chase, you don't know him." She kneads her fingers down the front of his shoulders now. "And are you saying I don't have the magic touch?"

Chase gulps. "I'm not saying that at all. Benn's right about that. You have magical fingers."

"You're muscles are really tight." She pops open the top three buttons of his shirt, slipping her hand inside, stroking his chest now. "How's that feel? Is this relaxing you?"

Chase's pulse is racing as her fingers glide gently over his bare chest. "I wouldn't say this massage is exactly relaxing me, stimulating is a better word."

"Sorry." She quickly pulls her hand out of his shirt. "I didn't mean it to be like that."

Her pulls her hand back and lies it over his chest. "It feels good, just not in a relaxing way. I like it."

"Oh?"

Chase stands up, facing her now. He stares at her glossy lips. She licks them and he can't resist it anymore. He leans down to kiss her, tasting her fruity lip gloss. She kisses him back, signaling him to deepen the kiss. All thoughts of Tess are out the window for the moment.

* * *

Tess arrives at Surfside Wellness with the breakfast sandwiches and coffee in hand. She walks off the elevator and bumps into Danielle in the waiting area. "Hello." Tess had a wide smile on her face as she walks by Danielle.

"Someone's in a good mood today?" Danielle smiles back. "What's up?"

"You'll know soon enough." Tess sing-songs. Tess wasn't thrilled when she saw the positive pregnancy test but she knows Chase will be over the moon happy about it and if it makes Chase over the moon happy then it makes her happy too, besides she's almost done with her residency, she can do this.

"Any chance I could sway you to come work with us?" Danielle asks. "We could use a good Ob-Gyn resident."

"It's really not a good time for me to switch jobs but I'd love to work here in the future." Tess thinks it might be a good idea to work at Surfside Wellness after the baby's born since they're sure to be more flexible with her hours than the hospital. Tess walks down the halls of Surfside Wellness towards Chase's office.

It's still early so there aren't any patients in the office yet. Tess doesn't bother to knock. She walks in Chase's office. She drops both egg sandwiches and coffees on the floor when she gets a look at Chase doing the horizontal bop against his desk with the pretty young nurse Michelle.

Tess can't help herself, she stands there frozen, staring, with her jaw dropped open. Chase looks over at her. This is a surprise. "Tess?" His jaw drops open. "Why didn't you knock?"

Tess shakes her head, frazzled. "I...Uh...-" She gulps. "I didn't think I needed to." She scurries out of the office in a state of shock.

"Tess!" He lurches backward, stumbling off the desk where Michelle is still lying. He falls backward on the floor in his haste to separate himself from her.

Michelle pulls down the skirt of her dress and sits up. "I told you I always fall for the wrong guys."

"I'm sorry, Michelle." Chase rises back up to his feet. He rubs his hand over his face before pulling his pants all the way up, zipping and buttoning them. "I should go after her." Chase runs out to the parking lot where he finds Tess sitting in her car staring straight ahead with her hands clenched to the steering wheel.

"I'm sorry, Tess." He knocks on the window.

She takes a gulp, turning to look at him before pushing the button to open the window. "How could you? How could you do this to me?" Her voice is shaky and it looks like her hands are trembling as they clutch the steering wheel. This is definitely not what she was expecting today.

He leans over to talk to her through the open window. "Things haven't been good for us lately. You refuse to set a wedding date. It's like we don't want the same things out of life anymore. I want to get married and start a family before I'm too old. Your priority is your career."

"So what are you saying?" Tess wipes a fallen tear away. "You want to break up?"

"No. I planned on spending the rest of my life with you but you've been stalling and stalling. How long do you expect me to wait? You won't even pick a wedding date out with me for Pete's sake." Chase runs his hand over his head.

"So instead of talking to me about it you decide to cheat on me?" Tess raises her voice now. "You think cheating's the answer."

"I _have_ talked to you about it and it's gotten me nowhere and I didn't plan to cheat on you, it just happened. Michelle started out giving me a shoulder rub and it just happened. Why aren't you at work?" He looks at his watch. "Shouldn't you be at work now?"

"Is that when you normally cheat on me?" She snaps. "When you're sure I'm at work and not going to walk in on you?"

Chase looks at his watch. "I can't fight with you about this now. I have a patient in ten minutes."

"I don't want to talk to you anyway." Tess scowls. "I don't want to see your cheatin' face ever again!"

Chase nods. "I know you're mad, I don't blame you. Maybe we should take a break to think about things."

"It looks like you already got a jump start on that break with Michelle." Tess starts her car up.

"I didn't mean to hurt you, Tess."

"It's too late. I can't trust you anymore. Have a nice life with Michelle!" Tess yells at him as she pulls away.

Chase shakes his head, sighing, as he watches her tear out of the parking lot.

Tess drives straight to their house and packs her belongings. She's going to be staying with her parents until she figures out what to do.

* * *

Charlotte and Cooper knock on the door to Andie and Nicky's house. Seven year old Harper answers. "Hi Nan, hi Grandpa." She gives them both a big hug.

"Where's your momma?" Charlotte asks the seven year old girl with the long blonde hair.

"She's sleeping." Harper points to the couch.

Two year old Charley has a trail of flour spilled all over the house. Charlotte takes the bag away from him. "What are you doing, boy?"

"See..." The two and a half year old takes his thumb out of his mouth a few sceconds to point. "No... nan...no"

"He's trying to make it snow." Harper tells her grandparents. "We saw it on TV. Charley wants to see what real snow looks like."

Charlotte crinkles her nose. "So you thought it would be a good idea to let him loose with a bag of flour?"

"Where's the baby?" Cooper asks Harper.

"He's asleep in his crib." Harper shrugs.

"You didn't make it snow on him, did you?" Charlotte asks, holding her breath, waiting the answer.

"No." Harper shakes her head. "We didn't think of that."

Charlotte checks on the baby who's sound asleep in his crib while Cooper cleans little Charley up. "Go wake up your momma." Charlotte tells Harper.

"Nuh...uh. I never wake momma when she's sleeping. She wakes up grouchy."

"Fine. I'll do it. Help your grandfather clean this mess up." Charlotte rubs Andie's back while Cooper vacuums up the flour. Andie looks at Charlotte with groggy eyes. "What are you doing here, momma?"

"We came to check on you and the kids and it's a good thing we did. Charley's got flour all over the place."

"Oh?" Andie sits up and looks around. "I must have dozed off."

"You can't be doing that with little ones runnin' around. Those kids are full of piss and vinegar like Drew was when he was little. You can't take your eyes off of 'em for a minute, let alone doze off for an hour."

"Sorry, momma." Andie wipes her eyes. "I'm just really tired from the party and then being up all night to feed the baby."

"Doesn't Nicky help you out with the night feeds? Charlotte asks. "Or do I have to camp out here at night to help my daughter?"

"Nicky usually helps me but he's got a big concert in Monterey coming up, word is Benn Golder may be there. The band needs to practice and I'm not working right now."

"Who's Benn Golder?" Charlotte asks.

"He's an exec from one of the big record producing companies so Broken Spell needs to be at the top of their game this weekend."

Charlotte looks around Andie's house, Cooper's vacuuming, Harper's dancing, and singing with her karaoke machine and Charley's jumping on the couch. ""You don't call this work?"

"I know, momma." Andie looks at her watch. "Michael Nikolas will be awake soon I better get his bottle ready."

"You'll do no such thing. Rest on the couch; I'll feed my grandson his bottle."

* * *

Chase arrives home from work. He looks around the house he shares with Tess, he notices a few items missing before he opens Tess's closet. Her clothes are gone. He looks in the bathroom, her toothbrush and all her cosmetics are gone. A feeling of terror envelopes him. He's been with Tess since he was sixteen. Is this really it? Are they really over? He drops down on their bed, burying his face in his hands. This isn't the way he pictured his life to be. They were supposed to get married and have babies. Is that dream really over now? He lies down and hugs his pillow. Tess was the only girl he loved for most of his life. He doesn't know how he's going to manage without her but another part of him tells him he was right. She wouldn't commit to a wedding date. How long could she expect him to wait?

He turns over onto his back, staring up at the ceiling and thinks, he shakes his foot and can't stop wondering how it happened this way. Tess should have been at work this morning. Why wasn't she at work? She never takes a day off even when she's sick. Why today of all days did she show up at his office with breakfast? She never does that. Was it bad luck? Bad timing? Or was it fate? Was this the universe's way of breaking them up? They've been together a long time but they were drifting apart these past few months because of her not wanting to commit to a wedding date. He starts to wonder, was she hesitating to set a date because she wasn't sure about marrying him? They haven't been with anyone else because they were always together. Maybe she was unsure about marrying him but too afraid to make the break herself. Maybe this needed to happen to force them to split apart, temporaily at least, to see if they really were meant to be together.

He decides to go with the fate theory because it's easier. It's easier to believe it was fate that made Tess show up in his office at the wrong time causing this breakup rather than bad luck. He thinks about Michelle now. He's so confused. Michelle is perfect in his eyes, she's beautiful and wants the same things as him out of life. She wants to find her Mr. Right soon, settle down and start a family. It feels like fate again, the universe forced him and Tess to break up but at the same time the Heavens sent him an angel to soften the blow.

* * *

Tess's father helps her move her stuff into his house. "You can stay here as long as you like, sweetie."

"Thank you." Tess sits on her old bed. She's emotionally hurting and she's pregnant. She lies on her back and looks up at the ceiling. She feels like she wants to throw up and she knows it's too early in the pregnancy to be from morning sickness. She's sick to her stomach thinking about Chase with that nurse. She trusted him, she gave him permission to dance with her at the Christening, she sat there and watched them dance. She wonders how long Chase has been cheating with Michelle. Does anyone else know about this? Has he been playing her for a fool? How can she be so stupid? She thought he was the perfect guy but there's no such thing, she thinks now.

She taps her hand on her belly and knows once Chase finds out she's pregnant he'll beg for her for forgiveness. She's not ready to give it. All she can see when she closes her eyes is him doing the horizontal bop on his desk with that beautiful young nurse. That image imprinted on her brain disgusts her and now Chase disgusts her too. She clenches her teeth together in anger. She's too mad to cry.

* * *

Nicky comes home late from work. The house is neat and the kids are already in bed. "Hey, Belle." He climbs into bed with Andie. "How was your day?"

"It was okay." Andie rolls over to talk to him. "My parents stopped by and helped out with the kids, they even cleaned the place up."

"Yeah, I noticed the place looks really good." He gives her a deep, eager kiss on the lips.

"I'm really tired tonight, Nicky." Andie breaks the kiss and lets him down gently.

"Aw, come on, Belle. How are we ever going to make baby number four if you're always tired when I come home?"

"I'm always tired because I'm running around taking care of babies one, two and three." Andie scoffs. "You've got to be kidding me about baby number four?"

"I'm not. I believe in even numbers and I promised Harper a sister."

"You can't promise her that." Andie tells him. "Even if I agreed to have baby number four, I could have another boy and I'm not trying for baby number five because then you'll want to even the numbers out and we'll end up with six kids, no way!"

"What if I promise you I'll get snipped after you have baby four?" Nicky asks.

"You would really do that?" Andie screws up her face.

"Yep. Then you don't have to worry about taking the pill or any other kind of birth control device. What do you say?" Nicky lifts his eyebrows up and down.

Andie rests her head back down on the pillow, closing her eyes. "Let me sleep on it. I'll let you know tomorrow."


	6. Chapter 6

_**CHAPTER 6**_

* * *

Andie surprises Nicky at his studio for lunch. She's wearing a short red dress with matching heels, carrying a picnic basket. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your company, Princess Belle! or should I call you Red Riding Hood?"

"Is anyone else here?" Andie scans the studio with her eyes.

"Nope. They're all out to lunch. Why?"

"Because, I've got a surprise for you." Andie opens up the picnic basket to reveal a canister of whipped cream, a bottle of chocolate syrup and some strawberries.

"It looks like you just brought dessert." Nicky forages through the basket. "Where's the meal?"

"I'm the meal." She pushes Nicky up against the wall. "Let's make that baby."

"Are you serious?" He's surprised.

"As long as you keep up your end of the deal."

"To get my boys snipped if you agree to have a fourth?"

"That's right." She sticks a strawberry in his mouth. He bites into it. They pass the strawberry around between their tongues. He wins and swallows it before saying. "Let's go." He picks her up and carries her into the back room just in case anyone walks in the studio. He locks the door and turns around to face her.

"Take off your clothes." She tells him, pointing the cannister of whipped cream at him.

"Yes, ma'am." He undresses quickly while she sprays him with the whipped cream. "Lie down on the floor, we're doing this my way." She orders him.

"Okay." He does as told. Andie seductively pulls off her red dress and then her bra. He's staring and waiting to see what she does next. She straddles herself on top of him. "What are you going to do to me?" He grins.

"Today you're going to be my sex slave." She sprays her breasts with whip cream. "Lick it off, nice and slow."

Nicky obediently follows his orders.

* * *

Tess walks out of the ultraound room with one of the other OB-GYN residents. She's holding a few paper photos in her hand. "Thank you for doing the ultraound on me." Tess tells the other resident. "Please don't say anything to anyone about it. I haven't told anyone else I'm pregnant yet."

"Your secret is safe with me." The resident agrees. "Congratulations." She tells Tess before going back to work.

Tess walks to the break room to grab some Oreo's and a drink out of the vending machine. She's starting to feel light headed again, she hasn't eaten in a few hours. She hasn't exactly been in the mood to eat these past few days because of her situation with Chase. She feels sick to her stomach and she's pretty sure at six weeks pregnant it's too early to be from morning sickness, it's from stress or nerves or whatever the hell Chase did to her body when she caught him cheating on her.

Tess grabs a blue pen and piece of white paper from the table near the couch. She sits down and decides to pen a letter to Chase. She's not ready to face him yet. Every time she closes her eyes she has an image of him and Michelle on his desk. Chase's pants were shimmied down just enough for him to do his business and Michelle's dress hiked up just enough to let him. She wonders how long he's been cheating on her. She had no clue, she feels like the world's biggest fool. She loved him, she trusted him. Has he done this before with other girls? She had absolutely no clue it was going on now so it could have been going on for years for all she knows.

She pulls the ultraound photos out of the pocket of her white lab coat. She looks them over carefully before picking two of them out. She holds back the tears that want to flow and thinks of the right words.

_Dear Chase-_

_CONGRATULATIONS- You're going to be a daddy. These are ultrasound photos of our baby. I'm writing you this letter because I can't face you. My head is spinning with questions. Do you still love me? Did you ever love me? How long have you been cheating on me? Were there others? Have you been playing me for a fool the entire time or did you change? When did you change? The Chase I knew and loved would never cheat on me. The Chase I knew and loved was an honest man but maybe I never knew you. In any case, I am pregnant with your child so we will need to work something out. If you're willing to answer my questions and discuss raising our child together meet me at Giorgio's this Friday night at 8pm. If not, I plan to leave town and raise the baby on my own. I'm not strong enough to sit by and watch you with your nurse lover. I hope to see you at Giorgio's but if not then...- Tess_

She places the ultrasound photos on top of the letter and folds them together before stuffing them in the envelope and sealing it shut.

* * *

Cooper picks Harper up from school and takes her home to his and Charlotte's house since Andie had plans for the afternoon. Charley and Michael Nikolas are already there. "Where's my momma today?" Harper asks her grandpa.

"She has plans."

"What kinda plans?"

She didn't tell me what they were. Your momma can be secretive just like her momma was." Cooper opens the front door. Harper runs into the kitchen and then back out again.

"Where's Drew? I need to talk to him." She asks Cooper.

"Try his room." Cooper looks in the playroom for Charlotte and the boys while Harper runs up the steps to Drew's room. Her blonde pig tails bounce along the way. She knocks.

"Come in." Drew looks up from his Nook. "What do you want, Squirt?"

"I need a big favor."

"What?" He puts his Nook down.

"I need you to beat somebody up for me."

"Who?"

"His name is Anthony."

"How old is he?"

"He's nine."

"I'm fourteen, Harp, I can't go around beating up nine year-olds."

"But he's big for nine, he looks ten and you're small for fourteen, you look ten. You can fight him. You're the same size."

Drew doesn't mean to but he can't help it. He slams his hand down on his desk. "I don't look ten!" He growls at Harper.

"Then why do they always give you a children's menu when we go out to eat at the restaurant?" Harper asks, innocently.

"Maybe I look twelve! The kiddy menus are for twelve and under. I don't look like a _ten_ year old that's for sure!" He snaps.

"I don't think age matters anyway." Harper tells him. "You're the same size as him. You could fight him for me."

"I'm in eighth grade. What grade is Anthony in?"

"Fourth." Harper shrugs.

"Do you know how much trouble an eighth grader would get in for beating up a fourth grader? It doesn't matter if he's big for his age."

"Well, can you at least scare him and pretend you want to beat him up?" Harper asks with big eyes.

"Why don't you like this kid?"

"He yanks my pony tails on the school bus everyday and he teases me."

"So, move your seat." Drew suggests.

"I did. Every time I move he follows me. I hate him."

"Sounds like he likes you." Drew teases.

"Why would he pull my hair if he likes me?" Harper places her hands on her hips.

"Because that's what boys do. He wants to get your attention. The next time he does it just turn around and talk to him, try being nice."

"What do I say?"

"I don't know. Ask him if he wants to go for a bike ride after school with you. If he says yes then he likes you."

"But I don't want to go for a bike ride with him." Harper replies.

"Then talk to him about something else. I don't know what you little kids like. Talk to him about a tv show you watch or a video game."

Harper sighs. "I guess I can do that."

"Good, let me now how it works out for you, now scram I have to read 300 pages and do a paper on this book before school tomorrow."

"That's a lot of work in eighth grade."

"I know, so scram so I can get it done."

* * *

Tess decides to leave the letter at Chase's office. She doesn't want to go in their house. She'll break down if she goes back there and breaking down is the last thing she wants to do. She needs to stay strong. She doesn't want to run into him so she waits until closing time. She knows that someone will be there late to close up and she knows it's not Chase's late night.

Danielle lets Tess into the offices of Surfside Wellness. "Hey Tess, what are you doing here? Looking for a job, I hope."

"No, I came to see Chase." She doesn't really want to see Chase. She knows that he's gone for the day. His car isn't in the parking lot.

Danielle replies. "I think Chase left for the day but you can check in his office." Danielle walks back in her own office.

Michelle's packing up her things to go home when she sees Tess walk into Chase's office. She watches through the office window as Tess places a letter on his desk. Tess pulls off her engagement ring and places it on top of the letter before walking out of his office. Michelle ducks back in the kitchen so Tess doesn't see her. After she's sure Tess is gone, Michelle scurries into Chase's office. She sits at his desk reading the letter. She glances at the ultraound pictures Tess left him before taking a deep breath. She shoves the letter and pictures back into the envelope and into her purse. She's not ready to give up her friendship with Chase yet, she knows that Tess wont want him around her anymore. She calls him on his phone. "My car doesn't start. Do you think you can give me a lift home?" She wants him to come to his office so he'll find the engagement ring Tess left on his desk.

After fifteen minutes, Chase shows up at Surfside Wellness. He finds Michelle sitting in the kitchen drinking a latte "Are you the last one here?" He asks.

"Yep, Danielle asked me to lock up on the way out but then my car wouldn't start" She lies.

"Maybe we can grab some dinner." Chase suggests. It beats eating alone again tonight.

"Okay, but I heard your phone ringing in your office earlier. I didn't want to go in and answer it without your permission. You should probably check your voice mail to see if it was important." There was no phone call. She wants him to find the ring on his desk.

Chase stalks into his office. He looks at the phone first before he spots Tess's diamond engagement ring sitting on his desk. "How did this get here?"

"Tess came by earlier, she must have left it."

"I can't believe she would just leave the ring on my desk. This is how she wants to end things?"

"She was very upset when she caught us the other day." Michelle rubs Chase's back. "I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault. You're not her fiancé, I am or I was." Chase sulks. He holds the ring in his fingers staring at it.

"Put it in your pocket." She takes the ring from him and sticks it in his pocket for him. "Looking at it will only make you feel worse."

"Should I call her?" He asks.

"No." Michelle answers, definitively. "Not unless you want to get into another fight with her, if she was upset enough to leave the ring on your desk it means she doesn't want to talk to you. She's a scorned woman right now, Chase, give her time to come around." Michelle kneads her hands into his shoulders. "How's that feel?"

"Nice." He sighs. "Nice."

Michelle takes that as a sign to go further. She pulls his shirt up and over his head. "It'll feel even better without the shirt."

Chase knows where this is headed but right now he doesn't care. He's mad as hell at Tess for just leaving the ring on his desk without talking to him about it first.

Michelle kneads her delicate fingers into his back. "We never got to finish what we started the other day." She runs her fingers over his nipples now. "You up for finishing the job?" She whispers in his ear.

Chase doesn't answer. He looks at Michelle and pulls her in close for a kiss. It's an aggressive, wild kind of kiss, almost angry, frenzied. He presses his lips into hers hard and she can feel his teeth brush against her lips but she doesn't care, she'll take anything she can get from him. She slips her hand into his pants and massages him with her delicate fingers. He can't wait, he pushes her down onto his desk and starts pulling off her clothes, hastily, while she does the same for him.

Tess is on her way home when she thinks twice about leaving the letter. Maybe she should just call him and tell him to meet at Giorgio's Friday night. She presses his number on her phone but gets his voice mail. She decides to turn around and go back for the letter and ring. She pulls into the parking lot and notices Chase's car is there. He's probably reading the letter right now. She takes a deep breath before taking the elevator up to Surfside Wellness. Good thing the door is still unlocked. She doesn't know what to expect, she's not sure how he'll react after finding the ring and reading the letter. The blinds to his office are wide open. She stops in her tracks. This is unbelievable! She can see very clear what's happening. She stops to watch for thirty seconds, not because she's a voyer but because she needs to make sure it's Chase. This couple is having badasss rough sex and Chase isn't a badass rough sex kind of dude, Chase is a gentle lover, with her anyway. Maybe that's the problem, she wonders now, maybe he was bored with their sex life. He obviously needed more. He likes it rough sometimes. How could she not know that? When she's sure it's Chase, she turns around and storms out of Surfside Wellness, angrier than ever. She doesn't know where she's going but she knows she never wants to lay eyes on Chase Freedman again.

After they're done, Chase and Michelle get dressed near his desk. "Do you believe in fate?" Michelle asks.

"I guess, sometimes." Chase shrugs. "Why?"

"I think fate brought us together." Michelle buttons up her blouse. "Think about it. I was recently dumped by my boyfriend."

Chase zips up his pants. "You mean that jerk, Benn, who was dating you while he was married then dumped you after he got his wife pregnant?"

Michelle pull her pants up. "Yup, Benn dumped me and now Tess dumped you. I think we were meant to find each other. We both want the same things in life. I'm ready to start a family, you're ready to start a family and we're definitely compatible. Benn was married and Tess doesn't want kids yet. I mean why should we be upset about them when they have different goals from us?"

"I'm used to being with Tess. We've been together since we were sixteen."

Michelle slips her shoe on. "Is that a good reason to stay with someone?"

"It's not just that." Chase doesn't want to tell Michelle that he's still in love with Tess after he just screwed her on his desk. It doesn't seem appropriate.

"I think fate put us together." She slips her other shoe on. "You wanna come have dinner with me at my place? I'm an excellent cook and it beats both of us eating alone since Tess moved out of your place."

"How about you come to _my_ place tonight? We can make dinner and watch TV together." Chase knows if he's alone he'll stay up thinking about Tess all night like he has been since she moved out. At least having Michelle there would be a fun distraction.

"Sounds like a plan to me." Michelle smiles and picks up her purse, the same purse that contains the letter from Tess and the ultrasound photos.

* * *

_**A/N:** Okay folks, as I told most of my reviewers yesterday if Tess got the chance to tell him and it all went smoothly, Chase would be thrilled, sweep Tess off her feet and they'd get married real soon but then..._we wouldn't have much of a story. _So, hang on for the ride and watch how we end up at the prologue where they meet up again and Chase meets his son. I will show Tess living with Baby Brayden in Georgia during the story. So, we still see plenty of Tess and she's not just going to be sitting around playing momma. She makes a life for herself in Georgia until she moves back to LA in the prologue. =) Once again thanks for reading/reviewing =)._


	7. Chapter 7

_**Chapter 7**_

* * *

**One month later.** ( _Because we have five years in time to cover, we need to move things along if we don't want this story to really take five years, =)_

Charlotte and Cooper are spending a relaxing evening at home with Drew and Harper. Drew's quiet while he munches on the grilled caesar salad Cooper prepared for dinner. "Why are you so quiet, Drew?" Charlotte asks.

"I don't know." Drew shrugs.

"Whatever happened with Sarah? The two of you were stuck like glue now she hardly comes around anymore." Cooper comments.

Drew plays with his salad. "Sarah has a boyfriend now."

"Isn't she a little young?" Charlotte asks.

"She's fourteen." Drew shrugs. "That's the age at my school when people start dating. Almost everyone's hooked up by now."

"Fourteen." Charlotte nods. "That's right, that's when the girls become boy crazy."

"I have a boyfriend and I'm eight." Harper pipes in. "He's nine and his name is Anthony and he's hot."

"Oh really?" Charlotte raises her eyebrows. "Does your father know this?"

Cooper looks pointedly at Charlotte. "She's eight Char, it's cute."

Harper continues, "Anthony was mean to me at first but now we're best friends, well, besides Rosie she was my best freind before I knew Anthony." Harper takes a gulp of her chocolate milk.

"I'll have to meet this young man to make sure he's good enough for my granddaughter." Cooper pretends to act tough before asking Drew "What about you? Do you have a girlfriend?"

"No." Drew shrugs again.

"Why not?" Charlotte asks. "If most of the kids in your grade are dating, why aren't you?"

"Who would want to go out with me?" Drews asks, feeling sorry for himself.

"What's wrong with you?" Charlotte asks. "You're adorable."

"I'm shorter than most of the girls in my class. The girls don't even look at me." Drew complains.

Charlotte lectures. "There are plenty girls at your school that are shorter than you, Squirt. I see the kids walking in when I drop you off in the morning."

"Who the sixth graders, momma?" Drew scoffs. "I'm in eighth grade and stop calling me squirt. Harper's the squirt now."

"Nuh uh." Harper shakes her head. "Michael Nikolas is the Squirt. He's the littlest one in the family."

Cooper informs Drew. "Your mother is five years younger than I am."

"I'm not dating a sixth grader, dad. People will think I'm some kind of pervert." Drew scowls, getting up from the table. He tosses his plate in the sink and stalks out of the kitchen with a grump on his face.

Charlotte watches her youngest son leave the kitchen before letting out a sigh.

"Don't worry." Cooper tells her. "Drew will find a girlfriend. He'll be fine."

"I hate this age." Charlotte throws her napkin down.

"He's mad cuz the kids at school tease him cuz he's short." Harper tells them.

"He told you that?" Charlotte asks Harper.

"He told me because I was feeling bad that Anthony was picking on me and pulling my hair on the bus. Drew told me how to make him stop and now Anthony is my boyfriend."

Charlotte does an eye roll. "Why does Anthony have to be your boyfriend? Why can't you just be friends with Anthony? You're eight-years old."

"Anthony is almost ten." Harper boasts.

"You remind me so much of your momma." Cooper shakes his head, smiling. He relishes the thought of Nicky getting his payback for dating Andie when she was a teenager, being three years older than her.

"What did Drew tell you?" Charlotte asks Harper, fishing for more information.

"He told me that he gets teased cuz he's short and there's nothing he can do about it." Harper drinks her chocolate milk.

"That poor kid." Charlotte looks defeated. "I had no idea this was going on. I have a good mind to go up to that school and...-"

Cooper interrupts. "In middle school everyone gets picked on for something. Drew's thing is he's short. He'll grow, Chief, Noah was short too but he shot up when he was about Drew's age. Drew just needs to hit his next growth spurt."

Charlotte worries. "Big daddy was short and stout. Drew takes after him a lot."

"And big daddy was a successful businessman. He married your momma and had three kids. Drew will be fine, stop worrying, momma." Cooper kisses her on the top of the head.

Chase strolls into the kitchen now. "How are you, Chase? " Charlotte asks. "We're finished eatin' but you can fix a plate."

"Okay." Chase sits down and spoons some Caesar salad onto his plate. "So, how is retirement treating you two? Have you been relaxing?"

Charlotte pours him a glass of sweet tea. "We've been busier than a one toothed man at a corn on the cob eating contest."

"Really?" Chase replies before sipping his sweet tea.

"Andie keeps us busy." Cooper clarifies. "We've been helping her out with the kids almost every day since Micheal Nikolas was born."

"Where's Nicky?"

"He's been workin' with the band a lot more lately. Some big name record producer, Benn Golder, is real interested in his band." Charlotte sits back down at the table next to Chase.

"I guess that's good." Chase sticks his fork in a piece of lettuce, not putting the name, Benn, together with Michelle's ex-boyfriend, Benn, it's a fairly common name. Hmmm?

Charlotte watches him eat while telling him. "I went out to lunch with some of the doctors from St. Ambrose today. They said Tess abruptly quit her residency last week and left town?"

"It's true, momma. I told you she gave back the ring. She just left it on my desk last month."

Charlotte shakes her head in disbelief. "That doesn't sound like Tess. What could be going on with her?"

"I did something." Chase tells them, looking guilty.

"What did you do?" Cooper asks.

Chase hesitates. He takes a deep breath and lets it out. "I didn't want to say anything to you, but it's not really fair for you not to know why Tess left, you got along really well with her and she left without even saying goodbye to you guys."

"Tell us." Charlotte waits with anticipation. "What'd you do?"

Chase looks down while he talks. "I cheated on her with one of the nurses from work. Tess walked in my office and caught us in the act... and... that was it...she's not giving me another chance."

"Why would you do something like that?" Charlotte grimaces. "You love Tess."

"I do love her, momma, but we were drifting apart. She refused to commit to a wedding date. I was starting to feel like she didn't really want to marry me but was too comfortable with the way we were to do _anything_, get married _or_ break up with me."

"You should have told her how you were feeling, not cheated on her!" Charlotte's voice is stinging.

Cooper raises his eyebrows up. "He kind of reminds me of someone else I know, not talking to me when we were dating and using Archer as an excuse to break up. "

Charlotte takes a breath. "That was different, Cooper."

"Was it?" Cooper asks, but goes on to explain. "You were upset with me but instead of talking to me about it you cheated on me with Archer. Chase was upset with Tess so he cheated. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree." Cooper raises his eyebrows again.

"You cheated on dad, momma?"

Charlotte gulps before explaining to her son. "Once. It was before we were even engaged. Your father moved in with Aunt Violet instead of moving in with me and it pissed me off."

"Why'd you move in with Aunt Violet instead of momma, dad?"

"Aunt Violet was pregnant with Lucas, she was feeling scared and alone and I was her best friend...-"

"Where was Uncle Pete?"

"Aunt Violet didn't want to tell him she was pregnant because she wasn't sure if Uncle Pete or Uncle Sheldon was Lucas's father at the time."

"Whoa." Chase sips his sweet tea before adding, "I never knew any of this. Does Lucas know?"

"I don't think so." Cooper explains. "There's no need to mention it to him now." Cooper warns Chase. "It wouldn't do any good to...-"

Charlotte holds her hand up to cut Cooper off from speaking. "But _I_ had no idea about any of that. Aunt Violet and your dad kept it a secret from everyone including me, his girlfriend. I had no idea what was going on with them. I ended up sleeping with Archer thinking it would make me feel better, to screw it to your father, but it didn't make me feel better. I've regretted it ever since." Charlotte makes it clear. " I immediately told your father I cheated and he forgave me."

"I forgave your momma because I loved her, I knew she was hurting, she cheated on me out of her own fears. I told her I would forgive it that one time but it better never happen again or I would be gone."

Chase plays with his salad. "Tess isn't willing to forgive me. She told me she never wanted to see my cheating face again and left her ring on my desk."

Charlotte nods "Tess is hurting, _bad_. It had to be a shock for Tess to actually walk in and find you with that nurse for herself. That's hard to swallow. You never forget the feeling of being betrayed as hard as you try, especially if you thought you were living the fairy tale with that person. It shakes your faith in your own judgement and it makes it hard for you to trust anyone else."

"You sound like you're talking from experience, momma?"

"I am."

Cooper explains. "Your momma walked in on her ex-husband cheating on her after they were married six months."

Charlotte adds. "Her name was Tiffany. They we're doing it in my house in my own bed that I shared with Billy. It made me sick. I still get a sick feeling in my stomach when I think about it because I trusted that man with my life. The last thing I was expectin' was to walk in and find my husband in bed with another woman. My world came crashing down on me that day."

"What happened after that?" Chase asks. "What'd you do?"

"I took the wrong path but that's a story for another day. Long story short, I met your dad and I couldn't be happier now than a dog with two waggin' tails."

"Did you ever forgive Billy like dad forgave you?"

"No, I left him, divorced his ass, never spoke to him again until your father forced me to. I didn't want to lay my eyes on_ his_ cheatin' face."

Chase looks at Cooper for an answer.

"Your mother had unresolved feelings for Billy. She never knew why he cheated on her so I wanted to clear the air before we were married."

"Did you clear things up?" Chase asks.

"We did." Charlotte replies. "But _this_, here and now, is about you and Tess, not me and Billy. What are you gonna do about Tess?"

"I told her I was sorry right after it happened. She didn't want to hear any of it. She was so mad at me. She tore out of the parking lot, screeching her tires and I haven't seen or heard from her since. She left the ring on my desk with no note or explanation a few days later. I think I have a right to be upset about that."

"All you can do is let her know that your sorry." Cooper advices. "It's up to her if she wants to forgive you when she's ready."

Chase adds. "I also told her it would be a good idea for us to take a break from each other before we got married to make sure we were doing the right thing. That pissed her off even more."

"You should have thought about that before you asked her to marry you." Charlotte shoots.

"I wasn't feeling that way then. I just started having these feelings recently."

"Why?" Cooper asks.

Chase stabs the salad with his fork. "Like I said before, she wouldn't commit to a date, that made me wonder if she was hesitant to get married and Tess is all about her career now. I want to settle down and have a family."

"She accepted the engagement ring." Charlotte tells him. "She agreed to marry you."

"I don't want to be engaged for ten years until her career is settled. Andie has three babies. I don't want to wait ten years for one of my own."

Cooper nods. "Chase is right about that, Charlotte. Tess was stalling about setting a wedding date. She can't make him wait forever."

Charlotte defends Tess. "She's doing her residency. She wanted to wait until she can give the wedding the proper attention; not throw together a sloppy wedding just to get it done and you shouldn't have cheated on her." Charlotte glares at Chase before leaving the room. "I adored that girl."

Cooper looks at Chase. "I think your mother is more upset about the breakup than you are."

Chase stabs his salad with the fork again. "If I didn't have Michelle, you'd probably be peeling me off of the train tracks about now."

"Who's Michelle?" Cooper watches him eat his salad.

"This hot nurse from work. She could be a supermodel."

"Is this the same nurse you cheated on Tess with?"

"Yeah." Chase nods. "Michelle feels really bad about it, she's been real supportive. I hang out with her almost every night. I'm thinking of asking her to move in."

"So soon?" Cooper winces. "So, there's no chance of you and Tess getting back together?"

"The writing's on the wall dad. She left the engagement ring on my desk without a note. She left town without calling to tell me. She's really hurt. I don't think there's anyway I can repair the damage."

"That's a shame." Cooper shakes his head now. "Tess was like a second daughter to your mother and I."

"I know. I screwed up." Chase shuffles his salad around on his plate.

"Why don't you just give in and call her?" Cooper pats his son on the back. "Beg a little."

"I tried to call her after she left last week. She had her number disconnected with no forwarding information. I asked her co-workers at St. Ambrose but they wouldn't tell me where she went. I'm sure Tess ordered them to keep their mouths shut. Her parents won't talk to me. She really hates me for cheating on her and I can't blame her. I would feel the same way if she did it to me."

"It's your first broken heart." Cooper tells Chase. "You and Tess have been together for years. The best way to deal with it is to keep busy, if Michelle helps to keep your mind busy than more power to her."

* * *

Andie and Nicky walk in the door with the Charley and Michael Nikolas and a chocolate cheesecake.

"Yay! Momma and poppa are here!" Harper runs up to her parents to hug them.

"We weren't expecting y'all to come over tonight." Charlotte takes the cake from Andie. "Did you miss Harper that much?"

"We have a surprise for you!" Andie announces.

"I hate surprises these days." Charlotte takes baby Michael Nikolas from Nicky.

"You'll love this one." Andie walks into the kitchen with Nicky and Charlotte following close behind.

"Hey!" Cooper gets up and hand slaps Nicky. "You guys can't just stay away from us, can you?" He teases.

Chase gives Nicky a high five before picking up Charley. "What's going on, Poulos family?"

"They surprised us with chocolate cheesecake, must be big news." Charlotte teases.

"What's the occasion?" Cooper watches Charlotte slice the cake.

"Can I tell them, momma?" Harper asks.

"Go ahead. I'm surprised you haven't already spilled the beans." Andie makes herself a cup of tea.

"You told me not too, momma. I'm good at keeping secrets." Harper pretends her lips are a zipper and moves her finger across zipping them shut.

"That's my girl." Nicky picks Harper up. "Go ahead, tell them our news, rabbit."

"Momma's going to have another baby. She's going to have a little sister for me." Harper tells her grandparents and Chase.

"Is she really now?" Charlotte asks, looking up at Andie.

"Yes." Harper answers.

"It's true, momma. I'm pregnant again." Andie announces.

"Good grief." Charlotte sighs. "You know you can't promise the kid a sister. I had three boys after I had you."

"We know, momma, and we explained that to Harper." Andie tells Charlotte.

"But a girl can dream." Nicky sits with Harper on his lap to eat cake with her.

"Me and poppa think it's a girl." Harper tells them while she digs into her cake.

"Are you going to find out the sex this time?" Charlotte asks Andie and Nicky.

"No. We want to be surprised like we were with Michael Nikolas." Andie tastes some cake off of Nicky's fork.

"But when you have the amnio done they tell you the sex of the baby." Chase tells them.

"We told them _not_ to tell us the sex when I was pregnant with Michael Nikolas but we're not going to do an amnio with this baby." Andie informs.

"Why not?" Charlotte asks.

"It's not worth the risk or hassle." Nicky replies. "We've have three healthy kids and we did amnio's with all three of them. Looking back it was unnecessary. Amnio's have a risk of miscarriage and why take the chance if it's not necessary."

"It's your choice." Cooper swallows down his cake. "But the law of odds say if you skip the amnio, this baby will be the one with the problem."

"Cooper!" Charlotte hits him in the arm. "Don't even say somethin' like that."

"Yeah, daddy." Andie complains. "You'll jinx us."

"Oh..hocus…pocus." Cooper pretends to cast a spell. The family laughs at him and continues to eat cake.

Charlotte gets up to answer the doorbell. Danielle and Lucas show up at the door with their five year old daughter, Rosie "Is Harper here?" Rosie asks.

"She's in the kitchen." Chalotte tells the little girl. Rosie runs into the kitchen to find her friend.

"I hope we're not too late." Danielle tells Charlotte. "Andie invited us. She said there was some kind of surprise she wanted to tell us about."

"They've already started eating cake but you're not going to believe the announcement or maybe you will, you _are_ Andie's best friend." Charlotte leads Lucas and Danielle into the kitchen.

"Guess what, mommy?" Rosie asks Danielle.

"What, sweetie?" Danielle asks her young daughter with the long light brown hair.

"Harper told me her momma's going to give her a baby sister."

"For real?" Danielle asks Andie.

"I'm pregnant but there's no guarantee that it's a girl." Andie answers.

"Oh..okay" Lucas responds. "For a minute there I thought you might have done sex selection, I'm against that. People want to pick out the sex, eye and hair color of their babies these days." Lucas goes on. "They're messing with nature's delicate balance."

"Yeah." Danielle agrees. "If most people wanted boys then we'd have a shortage of females in the world."

Chase chuckles. "I wouldn't want to live in that world."

"Nicky and I did our own kind of sex selection." Andie tells them.

"How so?" Danielle pours herself a cup of coffee.

"I looked up the best days in my cycle that would be conducive for female sperm to meet the egg first and then there's a certain position you can use. We tried...-"

Cooper holds his hand up. "I don't want to hear this."

"Really, Andie." Lucas scowls, annoyed. "There are little ears in the room, listening."

"They have no clue what we're talking about." Andie scoffs.

"They know more than you think, Sweet Pea." Charlotte advises her daughter.

Chase and Lucas take the kids into the living room and set up the Wii for them.

"So, have you heard anything from Tess?" Lucas asks.

"Nope." Chase sighs. "I screwed things up, bad."

"That's gotta suck. You guys have been tight for so long."

"Maybe that was the problem. I'm dating Michelle now and we're totally compatible. I could marry her tomorrow."

"Have you lost your mind, dude?" Lucas chuckles. "You just started dating her."

"But she's got it all. She's beautiful, she's fun and she wants the same things I want out of life. She wants to settle down and start a family. It's like she was put in my life to help me see the light when Tess and I broke up."

Lucas reminds. "Michelle _is_ the reason you and Tess broke up. You cheated on Tess with her."

"That's my bad, not Michelle's. I had a commitment with Tess, Michelle didn't."

"I hope you know what you're doing, dude." Lucas pats Chase on the back. "Don't jump into anything or you'll be sorry."


	8. Chapter 8

_**Chapter 8**_

* * *

_**THREE MONTHS LATER (**Because we need to move it along to get to five years later.**)**_

Tess comes back to town to visit her parents. She's already starting to show but her over sized blouse hides her four and a half month pouch just enough not to arouse suspicions. She decides to pay Charlotte a visit. Truth is, she misses her conversations with Chase's momma.

"Wow, this is a surprise." Charlotte opens the door, immediately giving Tess a hug. "I've missed you, kid."

"I've missed you too." Tess hugs Charlotte back.

"What brings you here?" Charlotte shows Tess into the house.

"I came to visit my parents and see how you were doing."

"I'm doing well. I'm gonna be a grandma again. Andie's pregnant...again."

"Wow, congratulations." She knows Charlotte's in for a shock when she tells her another grandchild is on the way from her and Chase. "How's Chase doing?"

Charlotte avoids discussing Chase. "Where have you been?" Charlotte leads Tess to the kitchen to sit and talk over a snack and beverage.

"I've been staying with my grandmother in Georgia." Tess follows Charlotte into the kitchen.

"How nice." Charlotte pours Tess a glass of lemonade. "I miss living in the South, sometimes."

"I like it." Tess takes a sip of lemonade before asking. "How's everything in LA?"

"Same ole' same ole'." Charlotte opens a box of crackers and pours them onto a plate.

Tess reaches for a cracker, she's always hungry these days. "How's Chase doing?" She asks for a second time now.

Charlotte changes the subject. "Dr. Rivera told me you abruptly quit your residency at St. Ambrose. Were you able to get into a residency program in Georgia?"

"I was accepted into the ob-gyn residency program at the Universtiy of Atlanta. I really like it."

"That worked out well for you then." Charlotte sets out some cheese to go along with the crackers.

"How's Chase doing?" Tess asks for a third time.

Charlotte spreads some cheese on a cracker, avoiding the question.

"Is Chase okay?" Tess asks. "Did something happen to him?" She worries now. Maybe she should have came back to talk to him sooner.

"Chase is fine." Charlotte sighs, she can't keep avoiding the question, she's going to have to tell Tess the truth.

"Then why won't you answer me whenever I ask about him?"

Charlotte sighs again. She dreads doing it but she has to. "I didn't want to be the one to tell you this but Chase is engaged."

Tess's jaw drops. "What? To who?"

"Her name is Michelle. She works with him." Charlotte looks down as she talks.

"I've only been gone for three months." Tess is beyond flabbergasted by this news.

"I'm sorry, Tess. If it helps I don't think it will last very long. He's just using her to get over you."

"No," Tess shakes her head. "No." She says again before abruptly rising to her feet, dropping her glass of lemonade on the floor, shattering it. Tess looks at the mess. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay." Charlotte looks at the broken glass. "I...I understand."

"I caught him screwing Michelle in his office, that's why I left him." Tess looks at the mess on the floor. "I've gotta go." Tess runs for the front door. She doesn't want Chase's momma to see her cry. She had plans of telling her about the baby but that's all gone to hell in a handbasket.

Charlotte tries to follow her but Tess is moving too fast. "I'm sorry, Tess!" Charlotte calls after her as she watches her run out the door. Charlotte turns around and looks at the mess Tess left behind on the floor. She shakes her head, annoyed, not at the mess Tess left but at the mess her son made of his relationship with her.

* * *

Drew plays basketball in school with his gym class. He misses the basket. "Don't let shorty have it." A kid teases. "He'll never be able to reach the net."

Drew walks into the school to use the bathroom. "Wait, Drew!" Sarah calls out.

"What?" Drew answers, annoyed.

"Bryce was only kidding when he called you shorty. He didn't mean anything by it." Sarah tells him.

"I'm short. I don't need to be reminded of it everyday." Drew keeps walking.

"Do you have a date to the eighth grade dance yet?" Sarah asks.

"No, not yet." Drew answers, hoping Sarah will want to go with him.

"Oh, good." Sarah tells him. "Because there's this new girl in my class who was asking me if I could fix her up with someone."

"Did she ask you to fix her up with _me_?" Drew asks.

"No." Lila shakes her head. "She doesn't know who you are."

"Then, the answer is no." Drew walks away.

"Why not Drew? You haven't even met her." Sarah calls out to Drew. "You'll like her. I think she's shorter than you."

Drew sighs and walks in the bathroom. He knows Sarah didn't mean to insult him but she just did.

* * *

Chase brings Michelle home to talk to Charlotte and Cooper. Cooper pats Chase on the back. He gives the pretty brunette with the bouncy curls a hug. "Why are we so lucky tonight to have the honor of your company?" Cooper teases them.

"We wanted to tell you we set a wedding date." Chase tells him.

"Char!" I need you!" Cooper calls up the stairs.

Charlotte walks down with her Nook, looking at both Chase and Michelle. "What brings you by?"

"They picked a date for the wedding." Cooper tells Charlotte.

"When is it?" Charlotte asks.

"October 15th." Michelle smiles at them.

"That's less than six months away. What's the rush?" Cooper asks.

"We want to get married. Why put it off?" Michelle shrugs.

"You two haven't even known each other a year." Charlotte points out. "Have you even known each other six months yet?"

"We know each other, momma. We see each other every day at work and every night at home, we're together all the time."

"I still don't see the rush." Charlotte tells him.

"I'm getting older." Chase explains. "I've waited years for Tess and look where that got me. I don't want to make the same mistake again."

Charlotte thinks a minute before telling Chase. "I need help changin' the light bulb in my bedroom ceiling fan. I need a tall fella like you to help me with it."

"I can help you." Cooper volunteers.

"Chase is younger and stronger. I'll take him." Charlotte pulls Chase up the stairs by the arm.

Michelle looks at Cooper. It's a little awkward.

"Do you want to come in the kitchen and help me make dinner?" Cooper asks Michelle.

"Sure. I love to cook. What are we making?" Michelle follows Cooper in the kitchen.

"We've got chicken, steak and I've got frozen salmon." Cooper opens the freezer. "Show me what you can do, kid."

"We'll make stuffed salmon." Michelle tells Cooper.

"Sounds delicious. Just tell me what you need me to do." Cooper pulls the salmon out. "You're the chef tonight."

* * *

Chase follows Charlotte into the master bedroom. He looks up at the ceiling fan.

"It isn't really broken." Charlotte tells him. "I just wanted to get you up here alone."

"In your bedroom, momma?" Chase snickers. "That's a little kinky."

Charlotte glares at her son now. "I need to talk to you."

"Anything you say to me you can say in front of Michelle, she's gonna be my wife."

Charlotte folds her arms together. "Tess Powers came by to visit me today."

Chase's eyes widen. He sits on the bed. "Tess was here. How was she?"

"She misses you like hell."

"Did she say that?" Chase asks.

"She didn't have to. It was written all over her face. She flew out of here like a bat out of hell when I told her you were engaged."

"Oh, where has she been for the past three months?"

"She's been staying with her grandmother in Georgia."

"Oh." Chase folds his arms.

"Do you still love her?" Charlotte asks.

"Of course I do. I spent most of my life loving her. Those feelings just don't go away but I screwed up. I cheated on her and she isn't willing to forgive it."

"I don't know about that." Charlotte says. "She came here asking about you. I think she's ready to start forgivin'."

"It's too late now, momma. I'm engaged to Michelle."

"What'd you have to go and get engaged for so fast?" Charlotte swats Chase on the backside.

"Michelle's been a lifesaver, helping me to forget Tess." Chase tells Charlotte.

"Well, if you wanna fix things with Tess, she's probably on her way back to her grandma's house in Georgia now."

"Momma, I can't." Chase sighs. "Michelle and I just set our wedding date today. We ordered the invitations and booked Giorgio's on The Water for the reception."

Charlotte folds her arms against her chest. "You and Michelle were busy bees today while I was meeting with Tess."

Chase puts his arm around his momma and walks her downstairs. "Momma, once you take time to get to know Michelle, you're going to love her."

Charlotte and Chase walk into the kitchen to witness Cooper and Michelle making stuffed mushrooms to go with the stuffed salmon. "Like this, Dr. Freedman." Michelle shows Cooper how to toss a mushroom in the air and catch it with his mouth. Cooper drops it. Michelle notices Chase standing there. She tosses one to him, he catches it in his mouth.

"Let me try." Cooper takes a mushroom and tosses it at Charlotte. "Think fast, Chief." Charlotte grabs and catches it with her hand.

"Close enough, Dr. King." Michelle laughs and tosses another mushroom to Cooper, he catches it in his mouth this time.

"Drew's gonna love you." Charlotte tells Michelle.

* * *

Drew takes Harper and Charley to the park. He's pushing Charley on the swing while Harper plays with Rosie on the Jungle Gym. Sarah and her boyfriend Kyle spot Drew and walk over to him. "What are you doing here, Drew?" Sarah asks.

"My sister's paying me to get the kids out of her hair while she makes dinner. They're all awake and drive her bezerk at this time of day." Drew explains.

Sarah looks at three year old Charley on the swing and tells her boyfriend. "Doesn't he look like a little doll with the red hair?"

"It's not cool to call a boy a doll but he's a cute little dude, I guess. Hopefully, they don't make fun of him for his red hair when he's older." Kyle tells Sarah. "Red hair doesn't look cool on dudes."

Drew shakes his head in annoyance. "Better not let his dad hear you say that." Drew warns Kyle.

Sarah adds "Yeah, his father is the lead singer of Broken Spell. You better not make fun of his kid."

Kyle shrugs. "Nick Poulos is a good looking dude. How'd he end up with a kid with red hair?"

"He looks like his mother, Nick Poulos's wife." Sara tells Kyle.

Drew adds. "She's my sister and she'll punch you out herself if you make fun of her kid."

Kyle shrugs. "I'm not making fun of him but they'll tease him about it when he's in school."

The ice cream truck pulls up near the park with music playing. Harper runs up to Drew. "Can I have some money?"

"Who's that?" Kyle laughs. "Your little girlfriend?"

"She's my niece." Drew pulls some money out of his pocket.

"Your niece? Ba ha, ha." Kyle laughs. "She looks like your girlfriend. She's almost as tall as you."

"Stop it." Sarah tells Kyle. "She's his niece and she's only eight."

"That's even worse, Freedman." Kyle jokes. "You're not much taller than an eight year old."

"He is so taller than me!" Harper defends. "See, I come up to his chin."

"Stop being mean." Sarah pulls Kyle to walk on the track in the park. "Bye, Drew. I'll see you tomorrow."

Drew takes Charley out of the swing to buy ice cream. "Why didn't you punch him for saying that about you?" Harper asks Drew.

"Did you see the size of him?" Drew tells Harper. "I'm not picking on a guy twice my size."

"But he was a jerk to you."

"I'm used to it. You think he's the only guy to tease me about my height?"

"You should take karate lessons and get your black belt and beat them all up." Harper tells Drew as they wait on line at the ice cream truck.

"Don't worry, I'll get even with them one day."


	9. Chapter 9

_**CHAPTER 9**_

* * *

_**Two months later.**_

Charlotte opens the door to let Andie, Nicky and the kids in. "Your belly's growin'." Charlotte rubs her hand over Andie's baby bump.

"You don't need to remind me every time I see you, momma." Andie gripes. "I'm not as big this time as I was with Charley or Michael Nikolas."

"Dinner's all ready in the kitchen." Charlotte tells them. "Chase and Michelle made Chicken Fettuccine and some fancy dessert."

"Sounds fattening." Nicky rubs his stomach.

"You got nothin' to worry about." Charlotte leads the family into the house.

"Are you saying, I do, momma?" Andie rubs her pregnant belly, following her momma into the kitchen.

"I said no such thing, Sweet Pea. Don't put words in my mouth." Charlotte picks up Charley and sits him in a booster seat at the kitchen table. She washes his hands with a warm wash cloth before telling Harper. "Wash up before supper."

Harper makes her way over to the sink. "Whats for dessert?" She asks while soaping up her eight year old hands.

Cooper chuckles. "We haven't even had dinner yet."

Nicky sits at the table. "You know the rules, rabbit, no dessert until you've finsihed your dinner."

"But we're at Nan's house." The eight year old tries. "You're supposed to get spoiled at your grandparent's house."

"Nice try." Charlotte wipes Charley's hands with a towel. "The same rules apply here."

Chase tells Harper. "You spend just as much time here as at your own house so going to grandma's house and getting spoiled doesn't apply for you guys, you practically live here."

"Are you jealous?" Cooper teases Chase. "Because your room is still available upstairs."

"No." Chase defends. "I'm just saying Andie and the kids are here a lot."

"We don't mind." Charlotte helps Michelle set the food out.

"The dinner smells really good." Andie puts baby Michael Nikolas into the highchair near Cooper.

"I guess I have baby duty again tonight." Cooper taps Michael on the nose.

"Andie?" Michelle turns around. "Chase and I were hoping you'd allow Harper to be a flower girl in our wedding and Charley could be our ring bearer?"

Andie sits down at the table. "I'm fine with that."

"I found the cutest little dress for Harper and I think Charley would look adorable in a mini-tux." Michelle sets the bowl of Chicken Fettuccine on the table.

"It's your wedding. Do whatever you want." Andie scoops some fettuccine on the kid's plates before her own.

"How are you doing, Drew?" Nicky pours milk for the kids.

"Fine." Drew scoops fettuccine onto his own plate.

"You don't talk much." Chase tells his younger brother as he waits for him to pass the bowl.

Michelle asks Nicky. "Would Broken Spell be able to play at our wedding on October 15?"

Nicky twirls his fettuccine on his fork. "I'll have to make sure we don't already have the date booked but if we're open, consider it done."

"Can you let us know as soon as possible? We'll pay the band. We don't expect you to play for free." Michelle tells him.

"I'm not going to charge you, you're family." Nicky twirls the fettuccine onto his fork.

Michelle announces to them. "I tell everyone how much I love Chase's family."

"That's what Tess used to say." Drew finally has something to say. It feels awkward. Everyone eats their food in silence now.

Harper is the first one to break the silence. "I miss Aunt Tess. When is she coming back?"

"She's not." Chase answers, quick and definitively.

"Why? I miss her." Harper tells Chase.

"She moved away and found a job somewhere else." Chase explains while he plays with his food.

"Why? Doesn't she like us anymore?"

Nicky tells his daughter. "Eat your fettuccine. I'll talk to you about Aunt Tess later, okay, rabbit?"

"Okay, poppa."

Charlotte spoons some fettuccine into three year old Charley's mouth. Truth be told, Charlotte likes Michelle, she's nice enough and Chase seems to adore her but still Charlotte misses Tess, dearly. Tess had become her second daughter, in a way.

Cooper puts his fork down. "Well, the one good thing about the wedding coming up so soon is we'll get to see Noah and Marley. They're going to spend the week before the wedding here."

Michelle and Chase exchange glances with each other. They both caught on to '_the one good thing'_ part of Cooper's sentence, once again, it feels awkward.

"I can't wait to see Marley again." Harper bellows "I love Marley!"

"Noah is your uncle, doofas." Fourteen year old Drew reminds Harper. "You're supposed to get excited to see him, not his girlfriend."

"But Marley always plays with me. She braids my hair and paints my toenails."

"It's okay." Charlotte tells Harper. "It's nice that you're close to Marley, maybe she'll be your aunt one day."

"Don't count on it." Drew drinks his chocolate milk. "Look what happened with Tess. We all expected Chase to marry her. The kids even called her Aunt Tess and now it's Ka-Put!"

Michelle looks at Harper. "You can start calling me Aunt Michelle if you want to."

"No, thank you." Harper answers, politely. "I'll wait until the wedding, just in case you run away like Aunt Tess did."

The table is completely quiet for the next five minutes until Cooper breaks the ice. "I'm done eating. Who wants dessert?"

"Me! Me!" Harper and Charley both call out at the same time.

"Kids." Nicky wipes Harper's mouth for her.

Chase rubs Michelle's arm, watching Nicky wipe the children's mouths off. "Soon we'll have one of our own, Michelle. I can't wait."

"Oh my God, you're pregnant?" Charlotte's eyes pop, focusing on Michelle.

"No, ma'am. I'm very responsible in that way." Michelle explains. "Chase just said that because we plan to start trying for a baby as soon as we get married which isn't long off."

"I see." Charlotte nods.

Michelle stands up, they all watch her walk over to the fridge. She certainly is a beautiful woman. She pulls the cake out and turns around to face them.

"What kind of cake is that?" Cooper rubs his palms together.

"It's a chocolate blackout cake. I made it myself." Michelle places the cake on the table before she slices it, handing the pieces to Chase to pass out. Chase gives each of the kids a piece before handing Nicky the biggest piece.

"Great job, Michelle." Nicky tastes the cake. "This is really good. It has coffee in the recipe, right?"

"Yes. I added an extra tablespoon of coffee and I also added crushed peanuts to the recipe." Michelle tells them. "To add a different flavor."

"Oh no!" Andie exclaims. "Nicky's allergic to peanuts!"

Nicky immediately puts his fork down. He hurries to the sink to spit the cake out before rinsing his mouth out with water.

"I'm sorry." Michelle apologizes to Nicky. "I didn't know you were allergic to peanuts." Michelle turns to ask Chase. "Why didn't you tell me Nicky had a peanut allergy?"

"I thought you knew. I thought everyone knew." Chase answers.

"Tess knew." Andie tells Chase. "How would Michelle know unless you told her?"

"What do we do?" A shaken Michelle asks Charlotte. "You're a doctor. Do you have an epi-pen?"

"Is my poppa going to be okay!" Harper yells out.

"Oh No! My poppa!" Charley bangs his spoon on the table picking up on the anxiety in the room. "Hewp my poppa!"

"Your poppa is going to be fine." Charlotte rises to her feet and takes a packet of benadryl out of a kitchen medicine cabinet that contains Cooper's cholesterol pills along with other over the counter meds. She opens the packet of Benadryl and hands Nicky two pills to swallow. "Take these. They'll help ward off an allergic reaction."

Nicky tells Charlotte. "I feel okay. I only took two bites of the cake and I spit one of them out." Nicky makes a weird face.

"What is it?" Charlotte asks, noticing Nicky's facial expression.

"My tongue and throat are starting to feel itchy."

Charlotte orders Drew. "Run upstairs and get my medical kit. I have an epi-pen in there."

"This is embarassing." Nicky's looks around the kitchen, noticing everyone is staring at him. "I'm fine, everyone I'm fine." He reassures them.

Andie rushes over to her husband. "You're starting to get hives on your face."

Nicky shakes his head. "This is embarrassing." He sits back down at the kitchen table, waiting for Drew to come back with the epi-pen.

"Don't be embarrassed, it's not your fault." Andie hovers over Nicky, rubbing his head. "You didn't know there were peanuts in the cake."

Nicky gulps, feeling his throat itch even more now. "I usually ask if there's peanuts but I thought I was safe here. I thought everyone knew."

Michelle looks on horrified at what her cake has done to Nicky.

Harper starts to cry now. "Is my poppa going to be alright?"

"He's going to be just fine." Charlotte reassures her before telling Cooper. "Get the kids out of here."

Drew runs back into the kitchen with the medical kit while Cooper escorts the kids out of the kitchen, down the hall to the playroom. Charlotte pulls the epi-pen out of the medical kit and injects Nicky in the leg with it.

"Thank you." Nicky holds his hand on his leg where Charlotte jabbed the epi-pen through his jeans.

Charlotte nods. "I want you, Andie, and the kids to stay over here tonight in case there's a problem. Technically, I should take you to the ER to be monitored after I administered the epi-pen but I don't wanna scare the hell outta the kids. You'll all stay here tonight, understood?"

"Understood." Nicky nods.

"I'll go home and get us all a change of clothes and pj's." Andie gives Nicky a kiss on the cheek. "Are you okay with me leaving for a few minutes?"

Nicky nods.

"Don't worry." Charlotte tells Andie. "I'm not gonna let anything happen to your man while you're gone."

"Thanks, momma." Andie gives Charlotte a hug before hurrying out the door.

Drew comments now. "Ever notice that whenever there's a serious problem Andie runs away?"

"It's not serious, I'm fine." Nicky tells Drew.

Charlotte looks Nicky straight in the eyes. "Peanut allegies are very serious. People can and do die from anaphylatic shock when they're allergic to peanuts. You're lucky I had an epi-pen. You should be carrying one around with you just in case."

"Oh my God! I'm so sorry." Michelle can't take anymore she runs out of the kitchen, frazzled. Chase follows her.

"What's wrong?" Chase asks.

Michelle sits on the couch. "Everything's a disaster. I tried so hard to impress your family with the meal and the dessert and it turned out to be a nightmare. I almost killed your brother in law."

"It was my bad for not telling you Nicky was allergic to peanuts. You had no idea and besides Nicky's fine now." Chase explains. "My momma would take him to the hospital if she thought he was in any danger."

Michelle wipes her eyes and tells Chase. "They love Tess, they kept talking about her. They hate me for taking Tess's place."

"You're not taking Tess's place." Chase plays with one of her brown, bouncy curls.

"Yes, I am. You were engaged to Tess and now you're engaged to me. I can't fill her shoes."

"My family hasn't known you very long." Chase comforts Michelle. "They've known Tess for over ten years."

"What if they never like me?"

"Give them time to get to know you, they'll love you just like I do." Chase brushes her hair out of her eyes with his finger.

Drew's the first one to come out of the kitchen. He notices Michelle's teary eyes. "Michelle, you're an awesome cook, much better than Tess, she couldn't cook for an army of rodents."

"Thank you. I think." Michelle responds.

"For what it's worth, I loved your blackout cake. It was a great touch how you added the peanuts, but of course, I'm not allergic." Drew chuckles.

"See?" Chases gives Michelle a gentle peck on her forehead. "They're starting to like you already. Hang in there."

"Okay." Michelle sniffles back her tears.


	10. Chapter 10

_**A/N -** I've been doing time jumps to move the story along, I've listed them at the top of each page for any of you keeping track so don't be surprised that the kids are aging and pregnancies advancing rapidly. We have five years to get through to get back to that cemetery scene. I can make the time seem longer if I post less frequently so it seems like more time went by. Let me know your opinions. Thanks_

_**Two months **after the last chapter._

_**CHAPTER 10**_

* * *

Nicky accompanies Andie to St. Ambrose to have a prenatal ultrasound. Andie lies on her back on the table while the tech performs the procedure. Nicky looks on.

"We don't want to know the sex." Andie tells the tech. "So, please don't tell us."

"I won't." The tech watches the monitor screen. This tech is not too talkative, she's taking a long time to do the ultrasound and she seems to be concentrating on a certain spot on the baby. This is Andie's fourth pregnancy so she's used to having ultrasounds and knows that they measure the size of the baby, checking the head and organs to make sure they measure within the normal limits.

"Is everything okay?" Andie asks, watching the monitor.

"Uhm…just a minute." The tech doesn't take her eyes off the monitor, she keeps measuring something. The monitor makes a beeping sound every time the tech takes a new measurement.

Nicky senses a problem now too. "What part of the baby do you keep taking measurments of?" He asks.

"It's the heart." The tech keeps her eye on the screen.

"How come I don't see it beating?" Andie asks, concerned.

"It's beating…here." The tech turns on the sound so that Andie and Nicky can hear the heart beat. They hear the repetitive lub dup lub dup sound, only a trained medical professional would pick up on the difference between this heart beat and that of a normally developed fetal heart.

"I like the sound of that." Andie sighs.

"Why can't we see it beat?" Nicky asks.

"I'm zooming in on different sections of the heart, I need to take different views and measurements from different angles, it's hard to see the beat from this zoom level." The tech tells them, still concentrating on the monitor.

"Why are you measuring the heart so much?" Andie asks. "I don't remember them doing that with my other kids."

"I'm a tech so I'm not allowed to tell you but I'll have the doctor come in and talk to you as soon as I'm done measuring." The tech explains.

Andie looks at Nicky. She doesn't need to say anything, he heard the tech too. There's something wrong with the baby's heart. Her eyes start to well up with tears. Nicky squeezes her shoulder.

The tech finishes. "Let me go get the doctor to talk to you." The tech leaves the room.

Andie puts her hands over her eyes. "Something's wrong, Nicky. They don't normally do that. It's the heart, there's something wrong with the heart."

"Okay." Nicky swallows while he nods. "Let's wait and see what the doctor says. Maybe it's not so bad."

"I hope not." Andie squeezes Nicky's hand.

The doctor comes in now. "Hello, Mr and Mrs. Poulos. I'm doctor Connors, I'm on call for Ob-Gyn today. The tech asked me to have a look at your ultrasound. How are you feeling?" He asks.

"I'm feeling fine." Andie responds. "I'm just worried about the baby's heart."

"Let's see." The Ob-Gyn doctor on call looks at the images on the screen. He checks out the meaurements the tech did. Andie and Nicky stay quiet while the doctor looks over the ultrasound himself now. He takes more measurements of his own and it seems like it is taking forever. "What are you, about twenty weeks pregnant?" He asks, looking at the ultrasound monitor.

"Twenty three weeks." Andie confirms.

"When was your last ultrasound?" He asks.

"Not since I was six weeks because everything has been normal." Andie talks fast before gulping.

The doctor can sense the panic in Andie's voice. "It's okay, I was just wondering why nobody picked it up sooner but you were too early at six weeks for it to show up."

"For what to show up?" Nicky asks.

The doctor moves the sonogram wand around to look at the different angles of the heart himself. "There is an abnormality of the heart." He tells them.

"We already know that." Nicky responds. "What's wrong with it?"

"The baby has a condition called Tetralogy of Fallot. I need to do a fetal echocardiogram of the baby's heart to see the extent of the problem." The doctor says.

"Can you do the echo on the baby before it's born?"

"Yes, we can. We need to get a better look at the Tetrology before the baby's born so we know how serious the condition is."

"What does that mean?" Andie asks. "Tetrology of...-?"

The doctor explains. "With Tetralogy of Fallot there are normally four different defects within the heart, sometimes only three are present."

Andie takes a deep breath. "How bad is it? Can the baby die from it?"

"There are different degrees of the defect, we need to do an echocardiogram to see if it is mild, moderate or severe but in most cases the baby will require surgery to correct the problem."

"When?" Andie asks.

"Depending on how severe the defect is. The most severe defects we like to fix immediately because it interferes with the baby's oxygen supply. In moderate or mild disorders we like to wait until the baby is a few months old so they're bigger at the time of surgery, it all depends, each baby presents different."

"What happens after the surgery?" Nicky asks. "Can the baby have a normal life?"

"That's what we strive for. Most individuals are able to lead a normal life after surgery."

"When can I have the echo?" Andie asks.

"I'll call the echo department to schedule it now." The doctor tells them.

"My mother is Dr. Charlotte King. She just retired as Chief of Staff, tell them that so I can get in as soon as possible."

"Got it." The doctor walks out.

Nicky smirks. "Trying to pull some strings?"

"I'm worried, Nick. I need to know how severe it is, so we know what to do."

"There's nothing we can do about it, Andie. It is what it is."

"If it's severe maybe we should think about not having this baby." Andie tells him.

"Are you kidding me?" Nicky screws up his face in disbelief. "You're almost six months pregnant."

"There's places that will do that kind of abortion if the baby has a serious medical condition."

"Those places are illegal." Nicky scoffs. "We're not doing that. We're having this baby."

"And what if it dies?" Andie asks.

"I don't want to think about that." Nicky tells her.

"You have to think about that." Andie tells him. "It's not just us. Think about Harper and Charley. Michael's too young to understand but Harper's eight and Charley's three. They're excited about this baby. What will happen to them if their younger sibling dies?"

Nicky shakes his head. "Harper's already excited about the baby. What are you going to tell her if you abort it?"

Andie answers. "I don't know but it's better to lose it now when I'm six months pregnant than for me to carry it nine months and have it die after it's born."

The doctor comes in. "They're ready for you in radiology to do the echo. I told them you were on the way."

"Thank you." Andie tells the doctor.

* * *

Charlotte and Cooper sit at the large round table at the 'Red Robin' family style restaurant with Michelle, Harper, Charley and baby Michael Nikolas in his high chair.

"Eat your chicken tenders." Cooper tells Charley as the toddler squirms to get out of the seat.

"I don't think he likes the booster seat." Michelle tells Cooper. "He's trying to get out of it."

"Let him out, Cooper." Charlotte looks at Charley and tells Cooper. "Charley's a big boy now. He's three, he doesn't need a booster seat like baby Michael."

"Alright." Cooper lifts Charley out of his seat and puts him down on a regular chair. "But if he starts running around the restaurant, you're chasing him, not me."

"What's the matter, Gramps?" Charlotte teases. "Arthritis setting in?"

"Ha, ha." Cooper squints his eyes at her. "You're not far behind me, Granny." He teases.

"If you don't mind me asking, how old are you?" Michelle asks Cooper.

Cooper sighs. "I'm an old man. I'm sixty-five."

Michelle slurps on her soup. "That's not that old."

"How old are you?" Cooper asks Michelle.

"I'm twenty-three."

"You're one year younger than our son Noah." Charlotte tells her. "He's in medical school."

"I met Noah at Michael Nikolas's Christening." Michelle answers. "Nice kid."

"Nice kid?" Cooper chuckles. "He's one year older than you."

"You're young." Charlotte tells her. "Why are you and Chase in such a rush to get married?"

"Chase is twenty-six." Michelle eats her soup. "He wants to start a family soon."

Cooper shakes his head. "I was almost forty when Andie was born."

"Chase doesn't want to be an old father." Michelle realizes how that sounded after it came out. "Sorry, I didn't mean to call you an old father."

Cooper smiles. "No offense taken. I'm a doctor. I finished my residency and had years to establish my practice before I settled down with Dr. King and started a family."

"That's what Tess wanted to do." Michelle tells them. "She wanted to wait and establish herself as a doctor before settling down but Chase didn't want to wait. That was their main problem."

"We're aware of that." Charlotte stabs her lettuce with her fork.

"What do you think is better?" Michelle asks.

Cooper replies."I don't think there's any right way. There are advantages and disadvantages to both. It depends on what's right for the individual."

"Ba, ba, ba, ba!" Ten month old Michael Nikolas sucks on a cracker while he throws his bottle on the floor. Cooper bends down to pick it up for him. He hands the baby the bottle back. "Ba! Ba!" The baby throws the bottle again. Cooper leans down to pick it up and hands it back to the baby. "Gah! The mini Nicky throws the bottle to the ground again.

Charlotte watches Cooper lean down again to pick up the bottle. "You two are going to be at this all day."

This time Cooper keeps the bottle. "Sorry, buddy, grandpa doesn't bend over more than five times in five minutes."

"That's why Chase and I want to have kids while we're still young." Michelle looks on.

Baby Michael starts screaming for his bottle which Cooper is holding onto. Cooper points out to Charlotte. "See that? He's all Nicky."

"I don't know." Charlotte laughs. "I see a lot of you in that kid." Michael cries for his bottle. Charlotte hands the ten month old some Teddy Graham Crackers from his snack pack. "Ga, ba, Ga, ba Doo!" He babbles now as he sucks on his crackers. "Doo doo doo da."

"Stop it, Michael." Harper scolds her baby brother. "We're in a restaurant. People wanna eat in peace."

Cooper laughs. "And I see a lot of _you_ in Harper."

"It's okay, peanut." Charlotte tells Harper. "He's a baby, people understand."

"Gooba….Gooba." Michael babbles.

"He's trying to talk to us." Harper tells Charlotte.

Charlotte nods. "He's practicin' his sounds. He likes to hear himself."

Michelle looks on. "I can't wait until Nicky and I have one. We want at least four."

"Ah.. .Just like we had and now Andie and Nicky will have four." Cooper picks up his salad with his fork.

Charlotte pipes in. "Andie was fine with three." She continues. "Nicky pushed her for the fourth one."

Harper calls out happily. "So I could have a sister!"

"Don't count your chicken before it's hatched, peanut, we don't know if it's a girl or a boy yet." Charlotte warns.

Harper pouts.

"It'll be fine either way." Cooper tells her. "As long as it's healthy."

Charlotte forks her salad. "Your grandpa's right, peanut. That's the most important thing."

"Are they going to find out the sex when they go for the ultrasound today?" Michelle asks.

"No." Cooper picks up his water glass. "They want to be surprised."

"Spoils all the fun if you know what is is." Charlotte tells Michelle.

"I wanna know." Harper points out.

"I don't want to hear any grief from this baby girl if we do find out it's another boy today." Charlotte looks at Harper.

Cooper puts his water glass down. "What difference does it make?" Cooper asks. "Harper will pout if it's another boy whether she finds out today or after the baby's born."

"Once the new baby's born, Harper will love it no matter if it's a girl, a boy, or a toad." Charlotte looks directly at Harper while she speaks. "Isn't that right, baby girl?"

Harper looks up at her grandma Charlotte, knowing she better say yes. She nods her head in agreement.

Michelle places her hand on top of Harper's. "But just think, sweetie, if your momma has a girl then you won't be the baby girl in the family anymore."

"Yes she will." Cooper answers. "Harper will always be our first baby girl grandchild. Charlotte's momma still calls Charlotte her baby girl." Cooper looks at Charlotte. "Isn't that right, Chief?"

"It is." Charlotte refuses to be embarrassed. "It's just somethin' we're accustomed to sayin' in the south, no matter how old a girl child is, she'll always be her momma and daddy's baby girl."

"I love the southern lingo." Michelle smiles. "Every once in a while Chase will say something and I know exactly where he got it."

Cooper pipes in "From his southern momma bear."

Michelle boasts. "I tell Chase all the time how much I love his family and how lucky I am to have crossed paths with him at Surfside Wellness."

"Thank you." Charlotte wipes Michael Nikolas's mouth with a napkin. "Chase is a good fella. He deserves the best."

Cooper laughs, telling Michelle. "Chases's momma really is a protective momma bear."

"I love Chase." Michelle tells Charlotte. "I only want to make Chase happy. You don't have to worry, I would never want to hurt Chase."

"Good." Charlotte takes Michael Nikolas out of his high chair, holding him on her lap.

"Welcome to our crazy family." Cooper smiles and wipes Charley's mouth while Charley tries to run away from his grandpa, laughing.

* * *

Andie and Nicky wait for the neonatologist in his office, following the echocardiogram. Andie shakes her foot while she waits.

"Good afternoon, Mr and Mrs. Poulos." The neonatologist shakes their hands.

"You can call us Andie and Nick." Andie tells the doctor.

"I understand you're Dr. King's daughter?" He asks.

"Yes." Andie nods.

"Best Chief of Staff this hospital ever had. We haven't been able to keep one for more than six months since she retired. The board is trying to get her to come back to work."

"Oh." Andie answers. "My momma didn't tell me that."

"I understand she's thinking about it." The neonatologist sits down at this desk. "Your baby has a condition called Tetralogy of Fallot."

"How bad is it?" Nicky asks.

"The baby has a moderate case. You see in Tetralogy there are normally four defects, your baby only has three of them." The doctor explains.

"Three is more than enough." Andie rolls her eyes. "Thankyouverymuch." She says quickly before listening to the doctor.

The doctor gets out a pen and a piece of paper and draws them a simple diagram of the heart. He talks as he draws. "The baby has a hole between two of the heart chambers and this artery here is misplaced." He points. "This area here is too narrow so it produces a narrow outflow of the blood. The bottom line is the baby won't be able to get enough oxygen in his/her blood supply to the body. They used to call these babies blue babies because of the low oxygen levels. You'll notice the baby turn blue when it cries and eats."

Nicky looks on. "That seems pretty bad."

"How long will it live?" Andie asks.

"Without surgery they can live to be about twenty-years old if they're lucky but with surgery to correct the problem there's a 90 per cent chance they'll live a normal active lifestyle."

"We'll take the surgery." Nicky nods. "When can we do it?"

"We'll do the first surgery when the baby is a few months old." The doctor tells them.

"You mean it needs more than one surgery?" Andie asks.

"Yes, we'll do another surgery when the baby is older to widen the artery and increase the blood flow."

"Why can't you do that when you do the first surgery?" Nicky asks.

"The first surgery is to correct the hole in the heart. We have to wait to widen the artery until the child grows." He draws another picture. "Do you follow me?"

"Yes." Nicky nods. "Because as the baby grows bigger it won't be wide enough if you fix it now."

"That's right."

"As long as you can fix the heart and the baby can have a normal life I'm okay." Nicky nods. "See, Belle. It's not as bad as we thought. The doctors can fix the heart."

"I recommend you also have an amniocentesis done." The doctor tells Andie.

"Why?" Andie asks.

The doctor explains. "Babies born with Tetralogy of Fallot are more likely to have other congenital defects than babies born with other heart disorders. Tetrology of Fallot is sometimes part of a bigger syndrome."

Andie shoots Nicky a look.

"I want to do another echo in a month to keep an eye on the baby. My secretary will call you with that appointment date." The doctor leaves the room.

Andie glares at Nicky.

"Why are you mad at me, Belle?"

Andie gets out of her seat abruptly. "This is our fault, for the cousin thing." Andie snaps.

"Oh, come on, Belle. We have three healthy kids."

"We should have stuck to three like I wanted!" Andie raises her voice, "But no, you had to have four kids and now look!"

"The doctor said there's a ninety percent chance the baby will lead a normal, active, healthy life after surgery." Nicky tells her.

"Were you sleeping when he told me to get an amnio because this heart problem goes along with a bigger syndrome?" Andie scoffs.

"I heard that." Nicky answers.

"And that doesn't worry you?"

"That sono tech was very thorough and the only problem she found was the heart." Nicky tells Andie. "I don't think you should have the amnio."

"Are you crazy?" Andie screws up her face. "The doctor told me too."

"Even if there was another problem, we couldn't do anything about it until after the baby's born so why bother to do an amnio and risk a miscarriage?"

Andie folds her arms. "There's something we can do."

"If you're talking about having an abortion, then you're crazy! The doctor said he can fix the heart problem with surgery!"

"What about the other problems?"

"We don't even know if there are any other problems!"

A nurse walks into the office. "Is everything okay in here?"

"Yes!" Andie shoots. "I was just leaving."

Nicky smiles at the nurse to make it look like they weren't just arguing. "We're fine. Thank you." Nicky walks out of the office in the opposite direction as Andie.

* * *

**Review please.**

_Fan Girl44- I normally answer all my reviews but your pm's are turned off, just wanted to make sure you were aware of it. =)_


	11. Chapter 11

_**CHAPTER 11**_

* * *

Two weeks later, Andie storms through the front door of Charlotte and Cooper's house carrying baby Michael Nikolas on her hip. Cooper's sitting on the couch watching 'Good Morning America'. Andie hands baby Michael to her father. "Where's momma?" She demands.

"Well, hello to you too." Cooper raises his eyebrows up at Andie. "Nice greeting." He says, sarcastically, before kissing baby Michael Nikolas on the nose. "Char!" Cooper yells out. "We have company!"

Charlotte saunters down the stairs, still wearing her robe. "Hi, Sweet Pea. What are you doing here so early?"

"I dropped Harper off at school and Charley off at his pre-school. You need to come with me now for an amniocentesis while daddy watches Michael Nikolas." Andie tells her momma.

"Where's Nicky?" Charlotte asks.

"Working at his studio."

"I meant why isn't he going with you for the amnio?" Charlotte walks over to Michael to give him a kiss on his chubby little cheek.

"He doesn't know I'm having it done."

"Why not?" Charlotte narrows her eyes.

"He doesn't want me to have it." Andie takes Michael's blue binky out of the diaper bag and hands it to him. The ten month old shoves it into his mouth for a second before pulling it out and trying to put it into Cooper's mouth.

Cooper snickers. "That's not my binky. That's your binky." Cooper looks at Andie now. "I thought you and Nicky agreed not to have an amnio this time because the other kids are all healthy?"

"This baby isn't healthy. It has Tetralogy of Fallot. It's a heart...-"

"We know what it is." Cooper looks surpsised. "When did you find out?"

"Two weeks ago when I had the ultrasound."

"Why didn't you say anything?" Charlotte looks into her daughters eyes. She knows she's hurting.

"I don't know." Andie shrugs. "The kids don't know there's anything wrong with the baby yet so please don't say anything around them."

"We won't." Charlotte confims before giving Andie a hug.

"The neonatologist recommended I have an amnio to check for any other defects."

"Why is Nicky against having an amnio then?" Charlotte asks.

"He says there's nothing that we can do even if they found something else wrong so we might as well wait until the baby's born to find out." Andie sighs.

"He has a point." Cooper playfully bounces Michael on his lap.

"It's better to be prepared." Charlotte advices. "What time's your appointment?"

Andie pulls out her phone to look at the time. "In half an hour."

Charlotte turns to head up the stairs. "Give me a few minutes to change and I'll be right there."

Cooper raises his eyes watching Andie.

"What?" Andie ask him.

He shakes his head. "Doing it without telling Nicky? I don't like it."

"I already told you Nicky doesn't approve of the amnio. I'm not in the mood to fight with him over it."

"When are you going to be in the mood to tell him about it?"

"Daddy, please, I don't need this right now. Things are stressful enough that the baby has this heart problem."

"Fine," Cooper nods. "I'll shut up but I don't agree with what you're doing."

"The amnio?"

"No, not the amnio. I don't agree with doing it behind Nicky's back."

Andie lets out a deep sigh while she waits for Charlotte to get dressed. "I gotta do what I gotta do."

* * *

Michelle walks into Chase's office. "I had my last dress fitting this morning. I can't believe the wedding is only a month away." It's been seven and a half months now since Chase and Michelle first got together after Tess found them screwing in his office.

"I know." Chase nods. "Lucas is planning a wild night out for my bachelor party."

"Not too wild, I hope." Michelle warns.

"Ha, ha." Chase laughs. "You know Lucas. His idea of a wild time is going out to a club and being back home before midnight."

"That's because he's married with a kid."

"I wonder why Lucas and Danielle only have one kid." Chase pulls Michelle in close and steals a kiss. "Rosie's almost six, it's time they had another one."

"He's your friend, ask him." Michelle wraps her arms around him.

"I thought that would be rude. What if they're having problems conceiving a second child?"

"Or." Michelle sits on Chase's desk facing him now. "They're busy people, both doctors; maybe one child is enough for them." Michelle runs her hands through his hair.

"Not for me." Chase moves his hand under her skirt. His fingers trail up the inside of her thigh.

"Me either." Michelle opens her blouse.

"I want lots of kids." Chase opens his pants and shoves them down with one hand. He tugs Michelle's panties down with the other.

"Lots and lots." Michelle wraps her legs around his hips.

"Hundreds." Chase licks her lips with his tongue.

"Millions." She breathes out between kisses as he pumps into her on his desk. They moan and groan without saying anything until they climax. Afterward she says. "I'm so lucky I found you. You're the perfect guy, my mister right."

"Ditto." He says as he climbs off of her to pull his pants back up. "I have a patient coming in five minutes."

"That was close." Michelle buttons up her blouse quick and pulls her panties back on. She straightens out her skirt while Chase tucks his pants in.

"We probably shouldn't do that when we're working." Chase chuckles while he straightens out his desk.

There's a knock on his office door.

"I'm leaving now." Michelle opens the door. "Oh, Lucas, we thought you were a patient."

"It's just me. I wanted to tell Chase I set everything up for his bachelor party next Friday night."

Michelle winks at Chase as she walks out of his office. "You don't need a bachelor party, you've got me." She smiles as she walks out the door.

Lucas shakes his head after she leaves. "She's hot and beautiful but I can't believe you're marrying her."

"Why?" Chase chuckles. "Aren't I hot and beautiful enough to be with a woman like that?"

"You belong with Tess Powers, dude. You guys were so good together."

Chase shrugs. "Things change."

"Do you still think about her?" Lucas asks.

Chase nods. "Every day."

"Really?" Lucas points out. "If you're gonna marry Michelle next month, you shouldn't still be thinking about Tess."

"I can't stop. I spent half of my life with her." Chase tells him. "I think about if she's dating anyone. I wonder if she found a good job. I wonder if she still thinks about me."

"Why don't you call her?" Lucas asks.

"Nothing's gonna change. She doesn't want the same things as me. I want a big family. Tess is more concerned about her career moving forward. Michelle wants four kids. She wants to start trying as soon as we get married. Michelle has the same life goals as me."

Lucas tries to explain. "Danielle and I have one child and we're satisfied, after you have your first child you'll see that it's enough to fulfill you. You don't need four kids to lead a fulfilling life." Lucas advices.

"I always thought the more the merrier." Chase chuckles. "Besides, my parents had four kids and I always wanted a family like I grew up in."

"Whatever floats your boat." Lucas tells him as he walks out of his office. "Don't forget your bachelor party next Friday night."

After Lucas leaves, Chase unlocks the top drawer of his desk. He pulls out a folder all the way in the back of the drawer. He stares at the picture of him and Tess taken on their engagement day. "God, I miss you." He says to the picture. There's a knock on the door. He quickly shoves the folder back in the drawer and closes it. He locks the drawer and calls his next patient in.

* * *

_**Meanwhile in Georgia**_

"It's a boy!" The doctor announces.

"Can I see him?" Tess asks.

The nurses clean the baby up before handing him to Tess.

"Congratulations! He's gorgeous." Tess's grandmother hugs her.

"He looks just like his father." Tess tells her grandmother. She looks fondly at the dark haired newborn in her arms. "He looks like Chase." Tess hasn't seen Chase in seven and a half months since she caught him with Michelle that day in his office.

"You should call him, dear." Tess's grandmother advices her. "Tell him he has a son."

"Chase is getting married to the woman he cheated on me with, grandma. I'm not calling him." Tess kisses her newborn son on the top of his head.

"He should know." The grandmother tells her.

"I'm sure he'll have children soon with his bimbo. This sweet little fella is all mine." Tess gazes at her baby.

* * *

Andie's grips her momma's hand while the doctor finishes up the amniocentesis. "We should have the results for you in one week." The doctor tells them.

Charlotte studies the image on the 4-D ultrasound that Andie's still hooked up to. She points something out to the doctor. "Do you see that?"

"Yes." The doctor nods. "I was going to talk to you about it after I finished the procedure."

"What is it?" Andie asks. "What's wrong now?"

The doctor answers. "The baby had a cleft lip and palate. You can see it right here on the ultrasound." The doctor points to the mouth on the baby.

"What does that mean?" Andie asks.

Charlotte answers. "It means the hard palate or the roof of the baby's mouth hasn't closed. It has a cleft or opening in it."

"Can they fix it?" Andie worries.

"Yes. The baby will need an oral surgeon to close the cleft palate and Jolie's a plastic surgeon. She can repair the lip. Jolie's done hundreds of those surgeries. Her patients barely have a scar." Charlote reassures Andie.

"The baby needs to have two operations on its heart. Now it needs surgery on it's mouth and then it's lip? That makes four surgeries this baby needs that we know of already and it's not even born yet." Andie stresses.

"It's okay, Sweet Pea. All of these problems can be corrected with surgery." Charlotte tries to calm Andie.

The doctor adds. "Some of the surgeries can be done at the same time so the baby doesn't have to go under anesthesia four times."

"That's right." Charlotte agrees. "We can schedule the cleft palate and the heart surgery for the same day."

"Do you think you'll find any more problems when the amniocentesis comes back?" Andie asks the doctor.

"I can't know that until I read the results." The doctor tells her. "I'll call you in one week." The doctor leaves the room.

"What am I gonna do, momma? I'm busy enough with Harper, Charley and Michael, how am I going to take care of a sick baby that needs all this surgery?"

"Lucky you." Charlotte tries her best to cheer Andie up. She hates seeing her baby girl so worried. "You have two doctors for parents." Charlotte assures her. "Your father and I will help you, your dad needs to keep his mind sharp now that he's retired."

"Should I tell Nicky about this?" Andie worries. "You know, about the cleft lip and palate?"

Charlotte furrows her brow. "You have to tell him, he's the baby's father."

"He's going to be so mad at me for having the amniocentesis behind his back."

"If there's one lesson I learned the hard way it's... not to keep important matters from the person you love, nothing good comes out of keeping secrets."

"Then you might as well keep the kids at your house tonight." Andie tells Charlotte.

"Why?"

"Because my house is gonna be a war zone tonight after I tell Nicky about this." Andie tells her momma. Charlotte shakes her head, she's well aware her son in law has a hot temper.


	12. Chapter 12

**_CHAPTER 12_**

* * *

_C_harlotte makes dinner for the kids while Cooper walks in the door with Harper. "I'm in the kitchen!" Charlotte calls them. Harper rushes into the kitchen while Cooper plays with Charley on the floor.

"Hi Nan." Harper opens the fridge to look for something to drink.

"How was dance class?" Charlotte asks the little girl.

Harper shrugs. "Eh…it was okay."

"You don't like it much, do you?" Charlotte asks.

"I like horseback riding better." Harper pours herself a cup of chocolate milk.

"So, why don't you tell your parents you wanna do horseback riding?" Charlotte sets the table for dinner.

"After I fell off Becca when I did that jump, my poppa says I can't get back on a horse again or I'll be killed next time." Harper explains.

"That was scary." Charlotte tells Harper. "I was watchin' that day with your momma and poppa when you were thrown off Becca, you're lucky you didn't get hurt too bad."

"I got nothing." Harper sips her milk. "I got right back up."

"Bless your little heart, you were lucky to walk away without a scratch." Charlotte calls Cooper. "Dinner!"

Cooper walks in with Charley. "Where's Michael?"

"Still sleepin'." Charlotte pours more milk for the kids.

"You mean he hasn't woke up from his nap yet?" Cooper questions.

"There's an old sayin', Coop, leave sleeping dogs lie, it's the same for kids."

"I know, Chief, but how is he ever going to sleep through the night tonight if he's been napping all afternoon?" Cooper scratches his head.

"The kid needs his sleep, then he won't be so cranky." Charlotte spoons the macaroni and cheese onto the kids plates. "Harper tells me she doesn't like her dance class."

"That's obvious." Cooper grabs a bottle of water out of the fridge. "She was the only little ballet dancer with a big pout out on her face when I watched them at practice this afternoon." Cooper pinches Harper's nose.

"I like horseback riding lessons better than dance but my poppa won't let me." Harper tells Cooper.

"Why?" Cooper samples the mac and cheese.

Charlotte answers. "Nicky got scared that time the horse threw her."

"Who didn't get scared?" Cooper responds. "But you know what they say... when you fall off a horse you're supposed to get right back on."

"That's what my momma said but my poppa always wins the fights." Harper eats her macaroni and cheese.

Charlotte sighs. She wonders if Nicky's going to win the fight tonight. She'll call Andie later to get the scoop.

* * *

Andie rests on the couch, watching the cake bake show on television. Michelle brings her a cup of tea.

"Thanks for helping me out this afternoon." Andie reaches for the cup.

Michelle sits down next to Andie on the couch. She pulls a one hundred dollar bill out of her pocket and hands it to her future sister in law. "Here, buy something for the kids."

Andie screws up her face, "Why are you giving me one hundred dollars? I should be paying you. _You_ helped _me_ out this afternoon."

"Your mother gave it to me. She asked me to come over here this afternoon and help you. I told her she didn't have to pay me but she insisted."

Andie chuckles. "That sounds like my momma."

Michelle frowns. "It was insulting."

"Why?" Andie sips her tea.

"I'm getting married to Chase in a few weeks, family is supposed to take care of family. It's insulting that she wants to pay me for helping you this afternoon."

"You're too sensitive. You should be glad my momma trusted you enough to ask _you_ to help me. She was Chief of Staff, she knows hundreds of nurses and she picked you to help me." Andie tells her.

"Yeah," Michelle replies. "But she doesn't have to pay me."

"It's something she learned from her rich daddy, paying people off helps fix everything."

"Huh?"

"My momma feels guilty because she's not the one helping me out today, so she paid you to do it."

"But she's watching _your_ kids, so she is helping you in that way."

"My dad could watch them himself, he was a pediatrician."

"So, why didn't your mother want to stay and help you today?"

"She doesn't wanna get in the middle of the big fight that's going to happen between me and Nick when he comes home from work."

"Oh?"

"My momma likes Nicky, _a lot,_ but she knows I was right on this one. She agrees I should have had the amino, she even went with me for it. She doesn't want to have a blow up fight with Nicky about it so she stayed home. That's why she asked you to help me out."

"It's nice your mother and father like Nicky. I wished they liked me."

"They adore you, Michelle. What makes you say they don't like you?"

"Sometimes, I feel like everyone wishes Chase was marrying Tess instead of me."

Andie scoots over on the couch to face Michelle while she talks. "Tess was like family. She dated Chase since they were sixteen. It feels weird not having her around. You haven't been around a year yet. Give it time."

Michelle nods. "That's what Chase says."

Andie looks at the television. "Check out that cake. You should have something like that made for your wedding. Nobody will ever forget it."

"Nah…" Michelle shakes her head. "I want something simple, elegant, but simple."

"Really?" Andie asks. "I pegged you to be the flashy type. I figured you and Chase would have some fancy, elaborate cake made for the wedding."

"No. I like the simple things in life and besides, the fancier the cake the worse it tastes, all that stuff they use to decorate it tastes nasty. If I'm paying that much money for a cake I want it to taste good, not just look good."

"I know what you mean." Andie laughs. "Nicky took me out to this fancy, expensive French restaurant one year for Valentine's Day. Everything looked so pretty on the plate with all these fancy designs they made with sauces."

"Did the food taste bad?" Michelle asks.

"Not at all." Andie tells her. "It was great but the portions were so skimpy that we left hungry. We ended up stopping at a drive thru for tacos on the way home because we were both really hungry when we left."

Michelle laughs.

"Nicky was livid when the waiter at the restaurant brought us the bill. It was over two hundred dollars for the two of us and we hardly ate anything, it was all decoration."

"Oh goodness." Michelle snickers.

"I was afraid Nicky was going to punch the owner. He went off on him that he wasn't paying two hundred dollars for food art."

"Did you have to pay the bill?" Michelle asks.

"No. The owner just wanted us out of there because Nicky was yelling and making a scene. Nicky has a temper." Andie tells Michelle.

Michelle shrugs. "At least you got a free meal out of it."

Nicky walks in the front door. "Poppa's home!" He calls out.

"The kids aren't home. They're at my parent's house!" Andie calls to him from the couch.

Michelle rises to her feet and decides this would be a good time to leave. She's new to this family and doesn't want to be in the middle of any arguments. She says goodbye to Andie and passes Nicky at the door on the way out. "Keep an eye on Chase for me at his bachelor party on Friday." She tells him as she walks out the door.

"What was she doing here?" Nicky walks up to the couch to greet Andie.

"Just visiting, talking about wedding cakes."

"Okay." Nicky says. "Why are the kids at your parents house? Do you need some private time with me?" He smirks.

"No." Andie tells him. "You're not going to want to talk to me after I tell you what I did today. I sent the kids to my parents so they don't have to hear us fight about it."

"Andie?" Nicky looks baffled. "What'd you do?"

Andie laughs. "I didn't cheat on you if that's what you're worried about."

"What did you do, Belle? Did you go on a shopping spree and run up the credit cards again?"

"No. I had an amniocentesis and I'm fine. That's why Michelle was here. She was helping me out so I didn't have to get up and walk around. I'm being a good girl, doing the bed rest thing."

"I can't believe you did it without telling me." Nicky shakes his head with disapproval.

"The doctor recommended it, Nick. You heard him, I agree with the doctor so I did it and I'm fine, no miscarriage, see?" She pats her belly. "You can flip out on me now, I'm waiting, go berserk."

"I'm not going to flip out on you." Nicky maintains his calm. "But I'm not happy you did it without telling me."

"I knew you would be mad. I wasn't planning to tell you."

"So, why _are_ you telling me?" Nicky asks.

"Because they did a four-D ultrasound with the amniocentiesis and my momma saw something wrong."

"Your momma was there?"

"Yes."

"What did your momma find wrong?" Nicky asks.

"The baby has a cleft lip and cleft palate. That's when the palate in the mouth is open and the lip is split apart too."

"Jeez." Nicky hits the wall with his fist now. "Why?"

"You know why. It's our fault."

"Did the doctor tell you that's the reason?"

"No." Andie shrugs. "I just think it is."

"But we have three healthy kids. Why this one?" Nicky asks.

"We pushed our luck." Andie tells him. "We should have been happy with three. We should have stopped with three."

"So, it's my fault? I wanted the fourth, not you. It's my fault this poor baby has to suffer?" Nicky bangs his hand against the wall again.

"I'm not blaming you, Nick. You couldn't have known this would happen."

"I should've!"

"You said it before, we have three healthy kids. There was no way to know this would happen."

Nicky shakes his head and grabs his keys.

"Don't go anywhere, Nick. You need to take care of me tonight. I'm on bedrest." She looks directly in his eyes and rubs her belly. "You need to take care of us."

He nods and throws his keys down on the floor. He sits next to her on the couch and rests his head on her six month pregnant belly. "I'm sorry." He kisses her bump.

She knows he isn't talking to her. She rubs his head and notices his shoulders moving up and down. Her eyes widen, he's crying. She's never seen him cry before in all the year she's known him, it breaks her heart.

"It'll be okay." She comforts him. "It's not your fault, Nick."

His shoulders continue to shake. She wants to cry too but she needs to be the strong one this time.

* * *

Chase sits on the couch in his house waiting for Michelle to come home. It's the house he bought with Tess, the same house he planned to raise a family and live happily ever after with Tess in. He sits on the couch he bought with Tess, the couch they made love on before their king-sized bed was delivered. Now he sleeps in that same king-sized bed with Michelle. He flips through the channels looking for something to watch. He pauses at some reality show about brides and weddings. He watches some chics on television talk about their wedding dresses before he dozes off. After a few minutes, he's dreaming. In his dream he's waiting at the altar of a church for his beautiful bride to march up the aisle. His bride stands in front of him, he lifts up her veil. He sees Tess smiling at him.

"I still love you, Chase." Tess says to him. Chase jolts up out of his sleep. He can still see Tess smiling at him in his dream.

"Hey baby!" Michelle walks in the front door. Chase sees the bride on the television and reflexively changes the channel with the remote, probably out of guilt for dreaming about Tess as his bride.

"What were you watching?" Michelle teases and takes the remote from him. She presses the return button. The reality wedding show is on. Michelle rubs his shoulder. "Honey, you don't need to be embarrassed. I'm happy you're watching wedding shows. It means you're into the wedding just as much as I am even though you don't want to admit it because your friends will think you're a sissy."

"We're not in middle school." He tells Michelle. "I don't care what my friends think anymore."

Michelle sits down on the couch next to him. "It makes me love you even more if that's possible." She kisses him.

He closes his eyes and imagines Tess now while he kisses Michelle; he gives her an eager passionate kiss.

"Wow." She breaks the kiss to tell him. "What's gotten into you tonight?"

"Shhh…Don't talk…Don't talk….Just love me." He hushes her.

"Okay."

He thinks of Tess as he kisses down Michelle's neck. He keeps his eyes closed when he removes her shirt. She pulls off his shirt and kisses his chest while he pulls both of their pants and underwear off. He enters her in a flash. He goes slow and steady while imagining it's Tess's underneath him. He remembers the look on her face when he proposed to her. She looked so beautiful. She wore her hair down the way he likes it and she was staring into his eyes, she told him she loved him. "Ahhhhh, Tess." He groans out loud as he climaxes. "I love you, Tess." He groans her name clearly this time. He pulls out of her as soon as he's sure that he's done releasing his fluid, he rests his head on top of her chest.

She gulps, feeling his weight on her body. "You called me Tess... twice." She informs him... "You still love her, don't you?"

"I'm sorry." Chase really is sorry. He doesn't want to hurt Michelle.

"You still love her."

"You still love Benn." Chase reminds her.

"I still have feelings for Benn but I love _you_, Chase."

"It's the same thing for me. I still have feelings for Tess but I love you, Michelle."

"Are you sure it isn't the other way around that you love Tess and have feelings for me? You said _I love you, Tess, _while you were making love to me."

"Why does it matter anyway?" Chase asks her. "I would be miserable living with Tess. She doesn't want what I want, you do… I can be happy with you. I couldn't be happy with Tess because she doesn't want kids anytime soon. I would grow to resent her for not letting me have a child for another ten years."

Chase rambles on while Michelle thinks about the letter Tess left him with the ultrasound pictures. She wonders if Tess had the baby yet. She wonders if Tess will call after the baby's born or if she's so mad at Chase that she's done with him for life? She should confess and tell him about the letter but she can't, she knows she'll lose him forever and that's too hard to think about. She'll take her chances that Tess won't call Chase again.

"I'm sorry." Chase says again. "Do you still want to marry me?"

"Hmm... I do, but if you ever call me Tess again during sex I'll chop it off." She gives him a pouty face with her bottom lip overlapping the top while she tugs on his Johnson.

"Ouch! How will we make those cute babies if you chop it off?" He plays along.

"Call me Tess again and I'll make my babies with someone else." She lets go of his johnson and rolls over. He's not sure if she's playing or serious this time.

"I'll try to forget Tess, I promise." He kisses her neck. "If you try to forget about Benn."

"We're like two peas in a pod." She tells him.

"Two peas in a pod." He agrees.

* * *

_**Meanwhile in Georiga:**_

An Ob-Gyn resident wheels the newborn into Tess's hospital room. "Do you want to try nursing him?" The resident, who is also a friend and co-worker of Tess's asks.

"Sure, hand me my baby." Tess holds her arms out.

"You want some company?" Her friend asks.

"Have a seat." Tess brings the newborn close to her boob and waits for him to latch on.

"He's a cutie." Her friend tells her.

"I can't take the credit. He looks just like his dad." Tess tells her friend.

"Have you thought about calling his father?"

"He knows where to find me. I told his momma where I was staying. It's his choice. I left him the ultrasound photos but he's too busy screwing his bimbo nurse to care."

Her friend decides to change the subject. "Did you choose a name for the baby yet?"

Tess nods. "Brayden Charles Powers."

"I like it." The friend tells her.

"It's a combo name." Tess tells her friend.

"What does that mean?"

"I named him after this FBI agent I knew named Jayden. He was a really good guy who died too young. I decided to name the baby after him and my dad.…Brad. I put the names together and came up with Brayden."

"Cute." Her friend nods. "What about the middle name… Charles?"

"My fiancé…I mean the baby's father's real name is Charles. He was named after his grandfather, except everyone calls him Chase for short. I thought the baby should have something from his father."

"What happens if Brayden Charles asks you about his father one day?"

"I'll tell him the truth when he's old enough to understand about love and cheating." Tess adds. "Which probably won't be until he's a teenager."

"That's a long time not to know about his father."

"Like I said before, his father knows where to find us."

"Maybe he's afraid you hate him now because he cheated on you while you were pregnant. Maybe he's too ashamed to face you." The friend suggests.

"I might believe that and have been able to forgive him for Brayden's sake if it was just one time or it was just sex with no feelings."

"I hear a _but_ coming."

"_BUT, _it wasn't like that. He's marrying the whore he cheated on me with, he's in love with the bitch. I wouldn't be surprised if she's pregnant already. The one thing he told me was that they both wanted the same things in life…children and now. He didn't want to wait until I was ready to have a child."

"And here you are, nursing his son."

Tess rants. "It won't be long before he has a child with the bimbo. Brayden is not going to be sloppy seconds to their child. _That's_ why I'm not calling him to tell him Brayden was born."

"I'm here for you if you need anything, Tess." Her friend tells her before she leaves the room.

"Thank you." Tess closes her eyes while she nurses the baby. She sees Chase's face in her mind, maybe she can't have _him_ but she has his baby.

* * *

Charlotte hangs up the phone and rejoins Cooper in bed.

"How did it go?" Cooper bounces Michael Nikolas on his lap. "Did Nicky throw one of his temper tantrums?"

"Andie said no." Charlotte sits down on her side of the bed. "She said he maintained his calm about her having the amnio but he's upset the baby has all these issues, he feels responsible."

"Why?" Cooper shrugs.

"You know, you being biologically related to Nicky's mother." Charlotte reminds.

"Did Andie tell him that was the reason?" Cooper tickles Michael Nikolas.

"She implied it."

"Why would she do that?"

Charlotte shrugs. "Andie believes that's the reason the baby has these problems."

"Charlotte, you've seen babies with Tetralogy and cleft palates at the hospital and it's not because the parents are related." Cooper points out. "Nobody knows what causes these kind of defects."

"Andie may be right and it could be the reason this baby has issues or it might just be bad luck. I told Andie we'll never know why. We just have to do our best to help this new baby live as happy and healthy a life possible."

"I love you, woman." Cooper gives her a gentle peck on the nose. Michael Nikolas giggles before giving his grandma a little kiss on her nose too.


	13. Chapter 13

_**CHAPTER 13**_

* * *

It's a typical Thursday afternoon, Cooper and Charlotte pay the Surfside Wellness Clinic a visit. They walk straight to Jolie's office and knock on the door.

"Come in." The brunette doctor calls out. She looks a little surprised to watch her old colleagues walk in her office together.

"How's everything going?" Cooper asks Jolie who's sitting behind her desk.

"I'm good." Jolie still looks surprised "And you? How's old age treating the two of you?" Jolie can't help but get a little dig in. "I meant how's retirement treating you?"

"Good." Cooper sticks his hands in his pockets and nods.

Jolie takes off her reading glasses and places them on her desk. "Ah…what brings you two in to see me? One of you looking to get a facelift?" She looks at Charlotte and smirks.

Charlotte grits her teeth and glares at the plastic surgeon.

"We have a patient to refer to you in a few months." Cooper tells her.

"Who?" Jolie puts her pen down to listen.

"Andie's baby, the one she's pregnant with. The baby has a cleft lip and palate and you do good work." Cooper sits in a chair in front of her desk. "You're expreienced with cleft lip and palate repair."

"My specialty." Jolie nods. "My patients hardly have a scar. I'll evaluate the baby after it's born and decide the best time to do the surgery."

Charlotte sits down in the chair across from Jolie's desk. "That's not the only problem. The baby has Tetralogy of Fallot. We were hoping to coordinate surgeries to reduce the amount of anesthesia the baby has to be put under."

"I'm sorry to hear that. I'll talk to the cardiac surgeon after the baby's born. We'll work it out." Jolie's tone is sympathetic now. "How's Andie dealing with it?"

"She's a strong kid; it's Nicky who's having a rough time with it." Charlotte tells Jolie.

"Did you explain that all of these defects are able to be treated with surgery?" Jolie asks.

"We did." Cooper tells her. "But it's still scary to send your infant off to surgery especially heart surgery."

"Tell Andie not to worry about the cleft lip and palate, I've got it under control. You'll hardly notice a scar."

"Thanks." Charlotte and Cooper shake hands and say goodbye to Jolie.

"So, are you ready for Chase to get married?" Jolie says before they leave. "It's coming up fast."

"I guess." Cooper shrugs.

"I rsvp'd. I'll be there." Jolie smiles. "We may be in-laws one day if Noah and Marley decide to tie the knot."

"Let's not rush them." Charlotte advices Jolie. "Let them get through medical school first."

"Oh, I know that, I just can't wait to have some grand-babies of my own."

Charlotte's eyes widen thinking of sharing a grandchild with Jolie, that's gonna be fun, she thinks sarcastically to herself. "We better get going." Charlotte pushes open the door.

They run into Chase in the hall on their way out.

"What are you two doing here?" Chase asks.

Cooper jokes. "We came to see you."

"Sorry, but I'm a pediatrician. Go down the hall to geriatrics." Chase jostles his parents.

"Dr. Freedman, your next patient is in the exam room, waiting." The receptionist calls out. Both Chase and Cooper turn around.

"She means me, dad."

Cooper turns back around. "I knew that."

Chase meets his patient in the exam room. There's a handsome man in his thirties waiting with his three year old son. Chase shakes the man's hand. "I'm Dr. Chase Freedman."

"You don't look old enough to be a doctor. You don't look much older than BJ." The father tells him.

"I'm a pediatric resident but I work under the doctors supervision here." Chase explains.

"No problem." The man tells him. "BJ's not sick. I just brought him in for a check up. I'm Benn Golder and this is my son Benjamin. We call him BJ."

Chase looks over at the three year old blonde boy. "Hey BJ, can you give me five?" Chase holds up his hand for the little boy to smack. The boy does it. "Wow. You are strong."

"When was BJ's last check up?" Chase asks.

"I'm not sure, my ex-wife usually takes care of that stuff. We recently divorced. I share partial custody of BJ with her." Ben tells him.

"Does BJ have any health problems that you know of?" Chase starts his exam. He looks in the boy's eyes, ears, nose and mouth.

"Nope. BJ's a strong, healthy boy."

Michelle walks in the exam room to assist Chase. She stops and stares at Benn with her mouth open.

"Michelle?" Benn asks.

"What are you doing here?" The surprise is evident in her tone.

"I brought my son in for a check up. This is BJ." Truth is, he wanted to see her again. He scheduled the appointment after learning Michelle was working at Surfside Wellness.

"Hi." The little boy waves.

"Hi." Michelle replies before rushing out of the room.

Chase looks at Benn.

"Michelle's my ex-girlfriend." Benn tells Chase.

Chase continues his exam on the child. "Michelle's _my_ fiance."

"No kidding?"

"Nope, we're getting married in less than two weeks."

"Be good to her." Benn tells Chase. "She's a good woman. We had a rough break up."

"She told me the story." Chase checks BJ's reflexes.

"So, she told you I was married when I was dating her?"

"She told me that."

Benn continues. "I only left her because my wife was pregnant with this little guy." He tousles BJ's hair.

"Michelle told me that too."

"You probably think I'm a jerk for that but I paid the price for what I did." Ben watches Chase examine his son.

"How so?" Chase asks.

"I broke up with Michelle for nothing. My wife and I are divorced now. I should have just stayed with Michelle, she could've helped me raise BJ."

Chase looks at Benn. "Do you really think Michelle would want to help you raise your son? You got your wife pregnant while you were dating her."

"You don't know Michelle very well, do you?" Benn questions Chase.

Chase just stares at Benn.

"Michelle's the most selfless woman I know. She would adore BJ. She wouldn't hold my actions against him."

"We're done with the exam." Chase tells Benn. "BJ's a healthy boy but I think you should find another pediatrician."

"Very well." Benn picks up his son and leaves the office.

* * *

Charlotte and Cooper are sitting in a quaint little restaurant. "Ah… this is nice." Cooper looks around the restaurant.

Charlotte drizzles raspberry balsamic dressing on her salad. "What's so nice about it?"

Cooper sighs. "The peace, the tranquility. We don't have to clean any messy little hands or wipe any dirty little mouths and noses today. We can just enjoy our lunch."

"Don't get used to it. Once Andie has the new baby she's going to lean on us a lot more than she does now." Charlotte sips her wine.

"You think she'll give us off one day a week to do stuff like this?" Cooper chuckles.

"Just wait until Chase and Michelle start having kids." Charlotte warns him. "They'll be askin' us to baby-sit too."

"Are we ever going to have _any_ time for ourselves?" Cooper gripes. He actually loves taking care of his grandchildren but it's fun to complain.

Charlotte informs. "The board of directors at St. Ambrose called me. They want me to take my old job back on a contingent basis until they can find someone new."

"But you're retired."

"They're having a hard time filling my shoes."

"What did you tell them?" Cooper asks.

"Nothing yet. I wanted to talk about it with you first."

"Do you want to go back?"

Charlotte shrugs. "I miss it. I was Chief of Staff there most of my life."

"I'm okay with it if you want to fill in until they find a replacement." Cooper agrees.

Charlotte sighs. "I'm worried about Andie. How's she going to do it with this new baby if I go back to work?"

"I'll help her." Cooper offers.

"How are you going to manage alone with all those kids while I'm at work? You're getting older, Coop."

"Heeeey!" Cooper protests. "Who are you calling old?" Cooper drinks his beer. "Go back to work. I've got it under control."

"Okay." Charlotte sighs. "I'll call in the morning."


	14. Chapter 14

_**CHAPTER 14**_

* * *

Charlotte rinses the dishes before handing them to Cooper to load into the dishwasher. They're babysitting again this evening so Nicky can go with Andie for a follow up ultrasound after he comes home from work. They hear eleven month old baby Michael Nikolas screaming in the living room. Three year old Charley runs into the kitchen to tell his grandparents, "Harpa made Mike-oo cry."

"We can hear that." Charlotte puts a plate down and follows Charley into the living room. "What happened, Harper?" Charlotte notices Michael Nikolas's face is bright red. His fists are clenched tight and he's screaming at the top of his lungs. "He's steamin' mad, Harper. What happened?" Charlotte picks Michael Nikolas up in her arms.

Charlotte's eight year old granddaughter is sitting on the floor stringing a bracelet out of colorful beads. "He tried to get my beads so I grabbed them out of his hand and smacked him." Harper informs Charlotte. "He can't have my beads, he'll choke on them."

Michael Nikolas arches his back and kicks his feet wildly while thrashing in Charlotte's arms. "Harper, you know you're not supposed to play with your beads while the baby is under foot."

"But I promised my momma I would make her a bracelet."

"Put the beads away now, Harper!"

"But I'm not done with momma's bracelet yet." Harper informs.

"I said put the beads away now!"

"That's not fair! Put the baby away now so I can finish momma's bracelet." Harper protests.

"Do not sass me, child! I'm not telling you to put those beads away one more time." Charlotte orders.

"You're mean." Harper mutters to herself while she collects the beads and throws them back into the box.

Cooper strolls into the living room now after finishing cleaning the kitchen. He catches on to Harper's last comment and sees Michael kicking and screaming in Charlotte's arms.

He looks at Charlotte. "What's going on?"

Charlotte places the screaming baby down into his play yard. "Harper and Michael were fighting over the beads."

Cooper looks at eight year old Harper. "You were fighting with a baby?"

"He was stealing my beads. He'll choke on them, so I hit him."

"Harper, go upstairs and sit in the guest room." Cooper instructs his granddaughter.

"I didn't do anything wrong. Michael can't have my beads." Harper insists. "I saved him from choking to death."

"Don't backtalk your grandfather, young lady, go upstairs." Charlotte scolds Harper, sharply.

"Fine!" Harper stomps her foot on the floor. "The next time I'll let him choke to death. How would you like that?"

Charlotte glares at her grandaughter. "You did not just say that to me. Now, get upstairs before I call your father and tell him you're misbehavin'."

Harper stomps up the stairs. "I'm telling on you! You're going to be in big trouble when my momma gets home!" Harper stomps into the guest room and slams the door.

Charlotte rolls her eyes, telling Cooper. "That child inherited her father's temper."

"So, did Michael. I saw the way he was kicking and thrashing when you were holding him." Cooper looks over at the play yard. Michael Nikolas has quieted down but he's still his arms and legs are still thrashing. "Charlotte, take a look at that…Is he?"

Charlotte looks. "He's having a seizure!" Charlotte and Cooper rush to his side. The door bell rings, three year old Charley opens it, telling Michelle "Hewwo"

"Hello." Michelle walks in the house carrying a box. She spots Charlotte. "I brought some wedding cake samples over for you to try."

"The baby's seizing." Charlotte tells Michelle. "I need you to stay here with Charley and Harper while we drive him to the hospital."

"No problem." Michelle puts the cake down to get a look at the baby. "Poor thing. Where's Andie?"

"She's at the hospital having an ultrasound."

Cooper grabs his car keys while Charlotte rushes out the door with Michael Nikolas.

"Drive Careful!" Michelle calls out to them as she watches them leave. "And don't worry about a thing here!" Michelle looks at Charley. "So, do you want to sample some wedding cake, kid?"

"Yay!" Charley smiles.

Cooper drives to St. Ambrose while Charlotte sits in the back seat with Michael Nikolas.

* * *

Andie's relieved after the doctor tells her that the amniocentesis results came back negative. Aside from the heart defect and the cleft lip/ palate the baby tested negative for any genetic disorders. She climbs up on the exam table. Nicky stands by her side. The doctor does her ultrasound instead of a tech so he can keep an eye on the heart defect.

"So," The doctor starts the ultrasound. "How are you feeling?"

"Not bad for twenty eight weeks. I haven't gotten as big with this pregnancy as I did with the others." She tells the doctor.

The doctor looks at the monitor and informs them. "There's no change in the heart from your last ultrasound but I want you to come back for another one in two weeks."

"Why's that?" Nicky asks with his hands in the pockets of his favorite jeans.

"At the time of Andie's last ultrasound the baby was in the 50 percentile in size which is average size."

"Okay?" Nicky asks rocking on his feet with his hands still in his pockets.

"Now the baby is in the 25 th percentile."

"Is that bad?" Andie asks.

"Not necessarily," the doctor says. "It just means the baby is a little smaller than average."

"My brothers were small as kids." Andie informs. "So why do I need to come back in two weeks?"

The doctor wipes the gel off her belly. "I want to watch the growth curve to be sure that the baby doesn't drop further. We like to see the growth pattern stay even. We don't like when it suddenly drops. That's a sign the baby isn't growing in the uterus but right now the baby is still on the growth curve so I wouldn't worry too much about it."

Nicky's phone rings. He takes the call out in the hallway while Andie gets dressed. A few minutes later he calls into the room. "Andie! We gotta go. Your parents brought Michael into the ER. He's having a seizure!"

"Good grief. How much more am I supposed to take?" Andie rushes out of the room. Andie and Nicky make their way to the ER as fast as they can. Cooper meets them in the hall. He puts his arm on Andie's shoulder. "He's okay. Michael's okay."

"So, he didn't have a seizure then?" Nicky asks.

"He did," Cooper nods. "But we gave some meds in his IV and the seizure was brought under control."

"Where is he?" Andie asks.

"Your momma's with him. They're setting him up for an EEG now." Cooper tells.

"What happened?" Andie asks." Did he have a fever?"

"No." Cooper sticks his hands in his pocket. "He wasn't sick. He ate his dinner. The kids were playing together in the living room. He got into Harper's beads. She took them away and smacked his hand, he threw a fit. He was mad, kicking and screaming so your momma put him in the playpen and the next thing we know he's having a seizure." Cooper explains.

"Do you think it's epilepsy?" Andie asks Cooper.

Cooper nods. "Considering you have epilepsy, yeah I do."

"Damn!" Nicky exclaims. "Why can't we catch a break?"

"Andie's had epilepsy her whole life and she's dealt with it fine." Cooper assures Nicky. "This isn't something to get all worked up about." Cooper advices.

Nicky leans his back up against the wall. "It's just that the shit's all hitting the fan at the same time. The new baby has medical problems and now Michael Nikolas is having seizures. What's next? How much more can we take?"

Charlotte comes out of the room. She can see Nicky's upset. "Michael's okay, he's sleeping. He'll sleep through the night. You two look exhausted. Go home. Your father and I will stay with Michael tonight."

Andie thinks about it. She knows from having seizures herself that Michael Nikolas will be sleeping for hours and not miss her. "Thanks, momma." Andie gives Charlotte a hug. "You're a lifesaver."

"I'm a mother." Charlotte shrugs. "Same thing."

Andie and Nicky both give a sleeping Michael Nikolas a kiss goodnight before heading home.

* * *

Chase walks in the door of his parent's house. Michelle is giving Harper and Charley temporary tattoos.

"Look, Uncle Chase!" Harper runs up to him. "Michelle gave me a butterfly tattoo on my cheek."

"Amazing." Chase smiles.

"I gots one too." Charley shows Chase a train tattoo on his hand.

"That train is the awesomest." Chase hand slaps with the three year old.

"Okay." Michelle tells the kids. "I set the chocolate chip cookies we made before and some milk out on the kitchen table for you. Have your snack now before it's bedtime."

"Yay, those are good cookies." Harper tells Chase. "You should try them."

Chase smiles. "Aunt Michelle has made cookies for me lots of times and you're right they're the best I've ever had."

Harper runs into the kitchen with Charley trailing right behind her.

"Did you really mean that about my cookies?" Michelle asks.

Chase sits down on the couch. He pulls Michelle onto his lap. "I love all of your cookies." He tries to give her a kiss.

She gently nudges him back. "Sorry, love, but not with the kids a few feet away."

Chase grins. "You're going to be a great mom."

Michelle scooches quickly off his lap and settles down next to him on the couch. "Why?" She teases. "Because I give awesome tattoos and make good cookies?"

"The kids love you." Chase says. "You're a natural with them."

"They're fun." Michelle lowers her voice. "I need to talk to you about something."

"It sounds serious."

"It is." Michelle nods.

"Okay." Chase crosses his leg over his knee. "Shoot."

"I need to know that you really love me before we get married next weekend."

"Where is this coming from?" Chase asks.

"I just need to know that you love _me_ and want to marry me for _me_, not because you can't have Tess."

Chase cups Michelle's chin in his hand. "I love you, Michelle."

"Good, then I made the right decision."

"What decision?"

"Benn came by to see me this morning. He wants to get back together."

"What did you tell him?" Chase furrows his brow.

"I told him I'm in love with you because I am." Michelle places her hand on Chase's knee, giving it a squeeze.

"Then why were you even questioning if you made the right decision?"

"Because you said _I love you, Tess,_ when you were making love to me, remember that?"

"I said I was sorry and it wouldn't happen again."

Michelle sighs. "I know you didn't say it on purpose but I'm worried you're still in love with Tess and marrying me because you can't have her. I don't want that. I want to make sure we have that straight before we get married. If you're still in love with Tess I'll go back to Benn. I don't want to be anybody's second choice."

"You're not my second choice. I told you I'd be miserable with Tess because she doesn't want kids yet...-"

Michelle cuts him off. "And I do... I know... I know, but that doesn't mean you love me it just means you're settling for me because I want a baby and Tess doesn't."

"Would you stop it." Chase kisses her. "I love you and that's my final answer."

"Okay. I believe you" Michelle giggles. "Now stop kissing me before the kids walk in and catch us."

Chase backs off again. "I guess I'll have to get used to it for when we have kids of our own."

"That's right." Michelle nods. "Now, where do you want me to put your tattoo?"

"Let's save the tattoos for later when we get home."

"I like that idea." Michelle smiles.

Harper walks into the living room. "When is my momma coming home?"

"Your momma just texted me. They're on their way here to pick you up now."

"So, we can stay up and wait for them?" Harper asks.

"Yep." Michelle nods. "They'll probably wake you up when they get you in the car to drive home so you might as well stay awake."

Yay! Let's make some bead bracelets while we wait." Harper gets the box back out.

Chase helps Charley make a bracelet out of beads while Harper and Michelle do their own.

"I like this," Michelle looks over at Chase. "_This _is exactly what I want.

"Me too." Chase smiles.

* * *

_**A/N-** We'll hear more about Tess in the next chapter._


	15. Chapter 15

_**CHAPTER 15**_

* * *

It's the night before Chase and Michelle's wedding. Chase stays at his parent's house so he doesn't see Michelle tomorrow morning before the wedding. The Freedman's have a full house tonight since Noah's came home from medical school for the wedding.

Charlotte and Cooper sit on the couch watching a movie while their three boys sit on the floor. "Are you nervous?" Noah asks Chase. "Tomorrow's D-day."

"Ha, ha." Cooper says. "That's for sure."

Charlotte shoots him a look. "What's that supposed to mean? You've got it made in the shade."

"I'm kidding." Cooper pokes at her side.

"You're next. When are you and Marley gonna tie the knot?" Chase asks Noah.

"Who says I'm marrying Marley?" Noah sips his beer.

"You've been going out with her since forever." Drew scoffs. "Either shit or get off the pot."

"Hey," Cooper corrects Drew. "Watch the language, parents are in the room." Cooper continues. "Your brother and Marley want to finish school before they make a commitment."

"Yeah, look at Chase." Noah points out. "We all thought he would marry Tess but they broke up and now he's with someone else."

"Her name's Michelle, Noah." Chase takes a sip of beer.

Noah shrugs. "I don't know her. I've been away at school."

"Well, you'll like her." Chase stretches out his legs. "There's nothing not to like about Michelle. She's all good."

"Better than Tess?" Noah asks. "Cause I thought Tess was a good woman. You and Tess were made for each other."

Chase shakes his head. "Things change, life moves on."

"Do you still talk to her?" Noah asks.

"Nope, things ended badly between us."

"That sucks," Noah tells his brother. "Even if Marz Barz and I break up one day I can't imagine her being out of my life. I'd keep her around as a best friend."

"What if Marz Barz met someone else?" Cooper points out to Noah.

"No way. She better not." Noah rises to his feet. "I'm tired I have to call Marley and say goodnight."

"Tell Marley I said hello and that I can't wait to see her at the wedding tomorrow." Charlotte gives Noah a good night kiss.

"I'm gonna hit the hay too." Drew gets up. "Tomorrow's going to be a long day."

"I better take my shower tonight." Cooper also gets up off the couch. "Your momma's going to hog the bathroom all day tomorrow getting ready for the wedding."

"Goodnight, dad." Chase hand slaps Cooper.

"Just think this time tomorrow you'll be a married man." Cooper tells Chase. "You'll be someone's husband."

Cooper walks up the steps. Charlotte looks over at Chase who's still sitting on the floor, staring into space.

"A penny for your thoughts?" Charlotte asks him.

"A hundred dollars and you can have them." Chase smirks.

"Wise guy." Charlotte playfully slaps his shoulder. "Now I tell me what you were lost in thought about."

Chase looks in his momma's eyes. "Promise not to tell anyone?"

"I swear." Charlotte holds up her right hand.

"Noah got me to thinking about Tess. I can't stop thinking about her. I feel like this is it. If I marry Michelle, there's no chance of ever fixing things with Tess."

"So why are you…" Charlotte hesitates, "marrying Michelle?"

Chase puts his head in his hands. "I love them both, momma. I love Michelle but I still love Tess too. I think about her all the time. I can't stop thinking about her."

"Call her." Charlotte rubs Chase's back. "You know where she is. She told me she was stayin' with her grandmother in Georgia, it shouldn't be too hard to look up her number."

"I already looked it up. Her grandmother's name and number are listed on the internet, I put her number in my phone. I was going to call but I never did."

"Call her." Charlotte insists.

"But what about Michelle?" Chase sighs. " We're getting married tomorrow."

"Would you be willing to call off the wedding if there was a chance of working things out with Tess?"

"I don't know." Chase agonizes. "I don't want to hurt Michelle." Chase rubs his head.

"You'd be hurting her more by marrying her while you're in love with someone else."

"I don't want to lose Michelle. She's been so good to me, momma."

"Well ya' can't have 'em both." Charlotte's firm. "You have to decide who you want before you marry that girl."

"I chose Michelle because she wants the same things in life that I do, Tess doesn't, but I can't stop thinking about Tess."

"What do you want to do, Chase?"

"I want to marry Michelle but I want to resolve these feelings I have for Tess. I don't want to keep feeling like this. We never really talked after I cheated. She just left town."

"Call her, Chase." Charlotte hands him the phone. "It's the only way you're going to work this out. Knock on my bedroom door and let me know if there's still gonna be a weddin' tomorrow when you're done."

Chase takes a deep breath and exhales before pushing the buttons on his phone for Tess's grandmother's house.

_**Meanwhile in Georgia:**_

Tess is nursing her newborn son on the couch at her grandma's house. The phone rings, she reaches for it with her free hand without looking at the caller ID. "Hello." She answers.

"Tess?"

Tess hesitates. She recognizes the voice on the other end, she's shocked to hear it. "Chase?"

"Hi." Chase smiles into the phone. "It's great to hear the sound of your voice again."

"Wow, this is a shock." Tess nurses Brayden. She assumes Chase must be calling to see if she gave birth yet. She's relieved, he _is_ actually interested in being a father to their infant, after all.

"How are you?" Chase asks.

"I'm great. How are you?"

"Fine." Chase replies. "How's work? Where are you doing your residency now?"

She thinks it's odd he would ask about work before asking about the baby but she answers. "At the University Hospital here in Atlanta but I'm on leave right now." She figures he'll know she's on leave because she had the baby.

"I'm surprised you would take a leave." Chase tells her. "You're all about work. Is everything okay?"

Tess is feeling a bit insulted that Chase would say something like that. How can he not expect her to take any leave after the baby's birth. "I'm not all about work anymore, Chase!" Tess snaps, defensively. "I have other priority's now besides work!"

"I didn't call to argue with you, Tess."

"Why did you call then?"

"I called to tell you I'm sorry how things ended between us. I wish we could have talked before you left town."

"What happened to that whore you cheated on me with?"

"Michelle?" Chase asks.

"Yeah, Michelle. Your momma told me you got engaged to her."

"I _am_ engaged to her."

"Does she know you're calling me?"

"No, she doesn't. I'm calling to say that I love both of you. I don't know what to do." Chase scratches his head, confused.

"I don't know what to say to that, Chase." Tess puts the baby over her shoulder to burp him.

"Do you still love me?" Chase gets to the point of his phone call.

Tess hesitates and answers, honestly. "You hurt me real bad, Chase….but yeah... I still love you."

"Would you be willing to forgive and forget?"

"I was getting ready to do that when I went back to LA six months ago but when your momma told me you were engaged to that...that..." Tess decides not to say the word again. She continues. "After your momma told me you were engaged it cut the wound open all over again."

"I'm sorry I hurt you. I never meant that to happen."

"I don't know where we went wrong, Chase. I don't know what made you look for love from someone else."

"Is there anyone new in your life?" Chase asks

Tess looks at baby Brayden. "As a matter of fact there is. I met him last month at the hospital, he's adorable." Tess thinks that Chase will understand that she's talking about their baby. He had to have figured out she was due last month. She left the ultrasound photos of when she was six weeks pregnant and it's been nine months now that she left.

"Oh." Chase swallows. "And how are things going with him?"

"Great. He's perfect." Tess smiles into the phone. "He reminds me a lot of you."

"Do you love him?" Chase asks, disappointed that Tess found another guy so fast.

"More than anything else in the world."

Chase swallows and responds annoyed, "I guess things worked out well for you then, you have him and I have Michelle. We can call it even."

"What?" Tess scrunches up her face. "Huh?"

"I'm glad we talked. You've answerd all my questions. It's great to hear you're happy. I'll leave you alone to be with him and I'll make a life with Michelle, she wants to have children right after we get married." Chase isn't really happy. He's disappointed she fell in love with someone else. He knows he shouldn't feel this way since he's marrying Michelle tomorrow but his love for Tess has always been stronger than his love for Michelle and he can't say the same about Tess's love for this new man in her life.

"Wait a minute, Chase. What about us? Don't you want to come to Georgia and meet him? I'd be okay with it."

"I don't think Michelle will approve of that. She's a little jealous of you. It's kinda been a big issue for us."

"So, Michelle's your priority then?"

"She has to be, we're getting married tomorrow."

Tess slams down the phone hanging up on him. She's furious! How could he put that whore before Brayden? She's so furious, she throws her phone at the wall, probably breaking it. She looks down at Brayden and knows she has to maintain her composure. "Looks like it's just you and me against the world, kid." She kisses his soft little baby head.

Chase walks up the stairs and knocks on his momma's door. "Yes?" Charlotte calls out from bed.

"The weddings still on, momma."

"Okay." Charlotte sighs and tries to fall asleep. She feels a little guilty wishing things went the other way.


	16. Chapter 16

_**A/N- **This chapter contains some content that is rated T, not for younger teens. Read at your own discretion._

_**CHAPTER 16**_

* * *

Chase waits at the altar in his black tux. Charlotte sits in the first row next to Cooper admiring her handsome eldest son. He looks like a young Cooper with his curly dark hair and gleaming blue eyes. Chase is nervous, his hands are sweating as he watches the bridesmaids walk up the aisle. He knows it won't be long before Michelle makes her appearance. Noah and Drew stand beside him as his best men at the altar.

After the last bridesmaid marches up the aisle, it's Harper and Charley's turn. Harper's wearing a magenta dress with a long matching ribbon in her hair. She tosses flower pedals in the aisle and smiles at the guests. Her three-year old red headed brother Charley wears a petrified expression on his face as he follows his big sister to the altar carrying a silk heart shaped pillow.

The pianist plays the Wedding March now. Michelle appears at the end of the aisle with her father. She's wearing a white strapless dress that stops above the knee. She has a long veil and a train trailing out from behind. She looks like a supermodel in her short white dress, Chase thinks. He watches her march up the aisle. He thinks how this is a really weird tradition and then he thinks about his dream last month. The one where he removes the bridal veil and it's Tess instead of Michelle. He's kinda hoping but when his bride meets him at the altar he lifts up the veil and it's Michelle, not Tess. He automatically smiles at her because she looks so beautiful. She's always had supermodel good looks but today she's shining more than ever. He can't take his eyes off her. Tess has straight blonde hair and is all southern twangy like his momma. Michelle is the opposite, she's an LA born and raised girl with long soft brown curls that bounce as she moves. He can't wait until the pastor is done talking so he can kiss her.

* * *

After the vows are said the intimate group of family and friends meet at Giorgio's for the reception. Nicky's band Spell Broken is already on stage ready to start the evening out with a romantic love song. Nicky calls Chase and Michelle out on the dance floor for their first dance as a married couple. Soon enough they're joined by Charlotte, Cooper, Violet and Pete. All the other couples come slowly trickling onto the dance floor. Andie sits at the table holding Michael since Nicky is playing with the band. Her phone rings. She carries Michael out into the lobby area of Giorgio's so she can hear better.

"Hello?" Andie asks.

"Andie, it's Tess."

"Tess?" Andie's shocked. "Tess? How are you?"

"Did he do it?" Tess asks.

"Did who do what?"

"Did Chase marry that bitch, Michelle?"

Andie hesitates before answering. "This morning. We're at the reception now."

"I can't believe he went through with it."

"Huh?" Andie's confused. She doesn't know Chase and Tess talked on the phone last night.

"I can't believe he would do this to me?" Tess starts to cry. Andie can hear her sniffling.

"Tess, you've been gone almost a year."

"It's hasn't been a year. I haven't even been gone nine months yet." Tess left when she was six weeks pregnant and the baby is one month old now.

"I don't understand. Why are you calling now?" Andie asks. "Today?"

"Chase called me last night." Tess explains. "He said he was sorry and that he still loved me."

"Whoa, I don't think Michelle knows that."

"No, Chase told me he didn't tell her that he was calling me." Tess wipes away a tear. "He said she was jealous of me."

"She's been having a hard time because, you know, my family loves you. She has big shoes to fill." Andie tells her.

"Good. I hope y'all give her hell."

"I miss you, Tess, we all do. Is there any chance you'd come back to LA?"

"Not if Chase is married to that bitch he cheated on me with. I want to stay as far away from there as possible."

"So, why are you calling me?" Andie asks.

"I wanted to see if he went through with marrying her I was hoping he chose…never mind."

"You were hoping he would have left her at the altar?"

"Something like that."

"I'm sorry, Tess."

"Me too, Andie. Give your parents my love." Tess hangs up. She figures Chase didn't tell his family about Brayden or else Andie would have asked about the baby. Probably another thing his whore wife, Michelle, wouldn't approve of. She has a good mind to call them and tell them herself. She thinks a minute about telling them about Brayden but that would only start a war with Chase and that's the last thing she wants for Brayden. She'll raise him alone in Georgia with her grandmother, at least his life will be peaceful.

Andie walks back into the party room after she finishes the call. She watches Chase dance with Michelle and wonders how things went so wrong with Tess. Noah and Marley dance along side Dylan and Lila. After the song is over they go back to their table. "That was so much fun." Lila says.

"I know." Marley agrees. "We have to get together more often."

"Remember when we use to hang out and smoke weed?" Noah asks.

"Remember, I still smoke it sometimes." Dylan tells them.

"Really?" Marley asks, surprised.

"Yeah, my roommate is big into it. He grows his own. He got me back into it."

"Wow! I have boring roommates" Lila laughs. "I haven't smoked the stuff since high school."

"I have some on me if you want to smoke it for old time's sake." Dylan offers.

"I don't know." Marley shakes her head.

"Oh come on, Marles. You're an adult now; you don't need to worry about your mother punishing you if you get caught."

"Fine." Marley gets up. "I suppose smoking a joint for old times sake might be fun." The foursome walk out of the restaurant and down towards the water.

Drew and Sarah are already sitting on the sand by the shore. "Don't look now." Drew tells Sarah "But here comes your brother and my brother and it looks like they're passing a joint around."

Sarah can't help it she turns around to look at them. "My parents know Dylan smokes but he's an adult so there's nothing they can do. My dad says they should stop paying his school tuition if he doesn't quit but my mom won't do that."

"Why?" Drew asks.

"Because she wants him to graduate. Dylan would pick weed over school if he had to make a choice."

Drew laughs. "How come you didn't bring Kyle as your plus one?

"I would have but the invitation was addressed to the Wallace family. I couldn't bring anyone."

"Oh." Drew nods.

Sarah tells Drew. "I love weddings. They're so romantic."

"If I ever get married I'm going to elope. I hate all this. It's like a big fake show."

Sarah chuckles. "I think most guys feel that way but a girl dreams about her wedding day sometimes before she even meets her Mr. Right."

Drew chuckles. "That's messed up shit if you ask me."

Sarah nudges him. "That's cuz you think like a guy."

"I am a guy." Drew scrunches up his nose.

"So, are you happy your brother married Michelle?" Sara makes circles in the sand with her finger.

Drew shrugs. "I have nothing against Michelle, she's nice and all but it's just weird. It doesn't feel right."

"Why?" Sarah asks.

"My brother dated Tess Powers for over ten years, he was engaged to her. They broke up and then Chase married Michelle so fast. They haven't even been together a year. It's just not right."

Sarah draws circles in the sand. "Yeah, I don't get the big rush. What would be the big deal if they waited another year or two?"

"Chase wants to start a family now, that's why. He's almost twenty-seven, he doesn't want to be an old dad. Tess wanted to wait a few more years until she was done with her residency and established a practice."

"Ah..." Sarah plays with the sand. "I understand now, Chase didn't want to wait for her to be ready to have kids so he found someone who is."

"Exactly." Drew nods.

"I bet it won't last five years then." Sarah tells him.

"I don't think so either because Chase still loves Tess and sooner or later it's going to come to a head. Michelle won't want to be sloppy seconds her whole life."

"But they'll probably have a bunch of kids by then so who knows what'll happen." Sarah looks out at the water.

Drew looks over at his brother, Noah, and his friends. "Oh my God! What are they doing?"

"Ha, ha." Sara laughs. "Looks like they're having a water fight." She laughs at Noah, Marley, Dylan and Lila who have all taken their shoes off and waded into the water together splashing each other. "Looks like fun."

"Yeah, but the main course hasn't been served yet. They have to go back in the restaurant in those clothes."

"Do you think they're high?" Sarah asks.

"Aha! They must be high to wade into the water with their wedding clothes on."

"We should tell them to stop before their clothes are soaked." Sarah suggests. Drew and Sarah get up and walk over to them.

"What are you doing?" Drew asks.

Noah tries to splash Drew. "Having fun. You should try it sometime."

Lila laughs and splashes Noah. "Kids today are so frumpy."

Dylan yells out to his little sister. "Come in the water, Sarah."

"No thanks, I don't want to get my dress wet!" Sarah yells back.

"Lighten up, Sarah. You only live once!" Dylan yells back from the water.

"But we haven't eaten dinner yet. We can't go in the restaurant all wet." Sara tells her older brother and his friends.

"It's a wedding! You're supposed to lighten up and have fun!" Marley calls out to Sarah.

"You know you have to go back in the restaurant in those wet clothes." Drew reminds them all.

"Party poopers!" Noah yells at Drew and Sarah.

"Let's go back to the restaurant. Forget about them, they're high." Drew tells Sarah before they walk back up to the restaurant. They join Charlotte and Cooper at the Freedman family table. Nicky sits down next to Andie. "Yay!" Andie hugs him. "I finally get to be with my husband tonight."

"Sorry, Belle. I'll come down and dance with you the next time Jodie sings lead."

"You better." She squeezes his leg tight. "Or nothing for you tonight." She smirks.

"What doesn't daddy get tonight if he doesn't dance with you momma?" Harper asks.

"I get no ice cream before bed tonight if your momma is mad at me." Nicky tells his daughter.

"Yay. We're having ice cream tonight." Harper tells her little brother.

"Yay!" Charley yells out.

"Hope you have ice cream in the house." Charlotte smirks. The waiter passes out the Filet Mignon or Chicken Codeon Bleu to the guests.

"Where's Noah?" Charlotte asks.

"He's hanging out with Marley and Dylan on the beach." Drew tells them.

"He's going to miss the dinner." Cooper complains.

"I don't think they care." Drew answers.

Nicky cuts up his Filet Mignon. "Who's that guy at the next table wearing the flashy tie?"

"Why?" Charlotte cuts up the meat for Charley.

"He was sitting in front of the stage all night tapping his foot." Nicky tells them.

"I noticed that too." Cooper says. "I introduced myself. His name is Benn Golder. He works for a big record label here in LA. He's interested in your band. He said he'd talk to you about it when the wedding is over."

"Benn Golder?" Charlotte asks.

"Yeah, why?" Cooper eats his chicken.

"He's Michelle's ex-boyfriend. Chase told me about him. Why would she invite him to the wedding?"

"Not everyone hates their ex, momma. They're probably still friends. I think that's nice." Andie takes a sip of water.

"Ha, ha." Nicky jokes. "Chase should have invited Tess. Maybe she could hook up with Benn."

"That's not funny, Nicky." Andie scolds." Tess called me earlier. She's very upset Chase married Michelle."

"Tess called you?" Charlotte asks surprised.

"Yep." Andie cuts her chicken. "She wanted to know if he went through with it and she wasn't happy, she was crying."

Charlotte shakes her head, annoyed. "Those two should have talked and worked this out months ago."

"Too late now." Cooper looks over at Chase and Michelle sitting at the bridal table in their big white bride and groom chairs. "He's married to Michelle now."

"It's never too late, dad." Drew explains. "They can always get divorced and Chase and Tess can get married."

Charlotte cuts up her own meat now. "Except by then Chase and Michelle will probably have a bunch of kids. They're going to start trying for the first tonight, on their honeymoon."

"The thing is." Andie sips her water. "I like Michelle. She's a really nice person and a lot of fun."

"I like her too." Harper yells out. "I like when Michelle and Chase babysit us."

"Maybe it'll all work out." Cooper eats his chicken.

* * *

Noah, Marley, Lila and Dylan decide to take a cab back to Lila's house since it's the closest to Giorgio's. Their clothes are all wet from the ocean. "Take your clothes off quick." She tells them. "We can throw them in the dryer. It shouldn't take too long for them to dry and then we can get back to the wedding before anyone misses us."

"Do you have anything for us to wear?" Noah asks.

"Just strip." Marley tells him. "It's nothing I haven't see before."

"You've seen it, but they haven't" Noah screws up his face.

"Here!" Lila throws them all over-sized bath towels to cover up with.

They strip in different corners of the room and throw Lila their clothes to toss in the clothes dryer.

"I feel like I'm at an toga party." Dylan laughs and pulls the rest of his weed out of his pocket before giving Lila his pants to dry. "We might as well smoke the last of it."

"My parents are going to be so pissed at me." Noah groans.

"Why?" Lila asks.

"It's my brother's wedding and I skipped out."

"The clothes will be dry in an less than an hour." Marley tells him. "Maybe they won't even notice we were missing."

Lila shrugs. "It's not like that marraige is going to last anyway. We all know Chase is still in love with Tess."

Dylan passes the joint around. "That sucks to marry someone who's in love with another woman. You know who I feel sorry for?"

"Who?" They all ask and pass the joint around.

"Michelle." Dylan puffs on the joint.

"Not me." Noah puffs the joint now. "I feel sorry for Tess. Chase and Michelle cheated on her. That's why she left."

Marley reaches for the joint, shifting her position before saying, "I don't feel bad for her, she ran away." Marley's towel falls down exposing her boobs. "It's her own fault for running away. She should have stuck around to work things out."

"Nice boobs!" Dylan tells Marley.

"Hey!" She pulls up her towel back up.

"Don't be embarrassed." Dylan tells her before pulling off his own towel. "Nothing wrong with flaunting what your momma gave you."

"Let's all pull our towels off!" Lila suggests before she whips hers off. "Rip off the band-aid, Noah."

Noah stares at her. "What are you afraid of Freedman? You got a small sausage?" Dylan teases.

"No." Noah scoffs.

"Then why don't you rip off the towel?" Lila asks. "We did."

Noah pulls his towel off, Marley does the same since the rest of them are sitting in their birthday suits. Marley moves in front of Noah so she's sitting between his legs.

Dylan looks over as Marley. "You're got some luscious peaches on you."

Noah covers Marley's boobs with his hands. "Hey! She's your half sister. Don't look at her boobs like that."

Dylan holds up his hands in surrender. "Holy Shit! I forgot. I'm not a pervert or anything. I just think of Marley more as a friend than a sister."

"It's okay." Marley laughs. "I forget sometimes too. I would never be able to sit in a room with Cole Jr without clothes on."

"Yeah." Dylan agrees. "I would never want to see Sarah naked but she's my sister, we grew up in the same house and have the same mother. It's different with you, you're more like a good friend than a sister." Dylan pulls his towel back over his lap to cover up.

Lila chimes in. "It's fine, Dylan, none of us think you're a pervert. You can look at Marley but you just can't touch that would be perverted."

"Yeah." Noah agrees.

Lila tells Dylan. "You can touch my girls if you want unless they're not luscious enough for you."

"No," Dylan shakes his head. "I like your set too. They're small but perky. Perky's good."

"Then get your ass over hear and touch them." Lila orders.

Dylan scoots over to Lila and cups her breasts. He makes swirls over her peaks feeling them harden under his fingers.

"You've got good hands, dude." Lila grabs Dylan's crotch and massages him gently.

"You're hands ain't so bad either." Dylan tongue kisses Lila as he presses her down to the floor.

Marley raises her eyebrows up and then down again before telling Noah. "We can do better than that." She places one hand on Noah's chest and pushes him down so he's lying on the floor beside Lila. Marley straddles him. She slides herself over him. "Aye Carumba!" She yells out as she rhythmically bounces herself against him.

"What?" Noah laughs.

"I don't know. I'm still high, just go with it." She laughs as she bounces on top of him.

"Easy, Pocahontas." Noah guides her hips up and down over his now. "My boys are sensitive."

"Sorry." She laughs. "I got a little carried away." She lets Noah use his hands to help lift her hips up and down over his. "Hmmm. That's nice." She purrs.

Noah turns his head to look at what Lila and Dylan are doing. His face is less than an inch away from Lila's. Lila turns and licks Noah's lips with her tongue while Dylan moves his fingers in and out of her. Noah reaches over and grabs one of Lila's breasts. He plays with the nipple. She screams "Fuck me now! Fuck me now, Dylan!" He obliges and is pumping in and out of her while Marley is riding Noah right next to them. Marley yelps on top of Noah as she reaches her climax. Dylan and Lila are moaning and groaning next to them and it's a race to the finish. Marley lets out a final moan before she crashes down on top Noah's chest. Dylan and Lila groan together as they reach their orgasm. "WoW! Lila exclaims. "That was the best sex I ever had, kissing one guy while screwing another."

"Me too." Noah breathes deeply. "How was it for you?" Noah asks Marley.

"It might sound weird but it turned me on to watch you and Lila kiss while I was screwing you."

"Same for me." Dylan tells Lila. "We gotta all do this again."

"When?"

"After the wedding is over tonight." Dylan suggests.

"I'm into it." Lila agrees.

"We're in." Dylan highs fives them all. "I can't wait until tonight for round two."

"Too bad Marley's your half sister or else we could really have fun and switch partners." Lila suggests.

"No way!" Marley protests. "Noah's penis belongs to me. He can kiss and do whatever to you but his penis is all mine."

"Yeah," Noah laughs. "And nobody else gets to fuck Marley either." He cups her between the legs. "This is all mine."

"Deal." They slap their hands together totem pole style.

* * *

Andie dances with Nicky at Chase's wedding. She rests her head on his shoulder. "I'm so lucky I'm married to you."

"Me too, Belle." He gives her a soft kiss on the lips.

"I don't want this song to end."

"Why?" He laughs. "You think my singing sucks? You want Jodie to sing the rest of the night?"

"Yes, but not because you suck. I want to keep you to myself all night, not share you with everyone else."

"Just remember when I'm up there singing that every song I sing, is for you." He kisses her again.

Noah, Dylan, Marley and Lila walk back into the restaurant.

"Where have you been?" Charlotte asks them.

"We took a walk on the beach." Lila lies.

"That was some long walk." Cooper looks them over. Their outfits are dry but their hair is all a bit messier than before.

"We had a lot to catch up on." Marley tells him. "We haven't all been together like this since we graduated high school."

"But we're going to have to make a point of coming home and getting together more often. We've just been having the best time together."

Lila laughs. "Yeah, all together."

"Well, you missed the food. It's a good thing your grandmother owns this place, Noah. I'll go in the kitchen and tell them to reheat four plates for you."

"Thank you. Dr. King. I'm starving." Marley tells her.

"Me too." Lila agrees. "I'm always starving after I smoke a joint."

"And sex." Dylan chuckes. "So after smoking a joint and having sex I'm famished."

"Shhh!" Marley hushes him. "Don't let anyone hear you."

Sarah whispers to Drew. "Too bad we already heard them."

"Do you think they had some kind of group sex?" Drew asks.

Sarah shakes her head. "Nothing would surprise me with them."

After the party's over, Michelle and Chase say goodbye to everyone before they leave for their honeymoon. Nicky talks to Benn about his band. Charlotte and Cooper help Andie carry her sleeping children to the mini-van. "With any luck Nicky's band could get a record deal." Charlotte tells her daughter.

"Nicky would love that." Andie buckles a sleeping Michael Nikolas into his car seat.

Noah comes over to say goodbye. He's going to hang out with Marley, Dylan and Lila tonight.

Charlotte and Cooper get in their car. "I'm glad this day is over." Charlotte tells Cooper.

"Why do I feel like there's going to be a lot of fallout from this day?" He says.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean from what Andie said about Tess calling. Why would she call out of the blue on his wedding day?"

"It wasn't out of the blue. Chase called Tess last night to tell her he still loved her." Charlotte tells him.

"Then why did he just marry Michelle?"

"Because Tess told him she met someone else and hung up on him and he says he loves Michelle too."

Cooper shakes his headsays as he drives home. "I guess we have to let them live and learn for themselves the hard way.'

"Like we did." Charlotte nods.

Drew listens to his parents talk in the back seat. he wonders what they would say if they knew what Noah and his friends were doing while they were supposed to be at the wedding.


	17. Chapter 17

_**CHAPTER 17**_

* * *

_**Three Weeks Later:**_

Chase and Michelle return to work after spending two weeks on their Hawaiian honeymoon. They took another week to drive the Pacific Coast highway stopping at sites along the way.

Michelle enters Chase's office with a beaming smile on her face. "Hello, husband."

"You're happy to be back at work." He gets up from his desk to give his new wife a kiss.

"That's not why I'm happy." She whips the little plastic stick out of her pocket and shows it to him.

"Is that what I think it is?" He asks.

"Aha." She smiles bigger than he's ever seen. She looks more beautiful to him than ever. He picks her up and spins her around three times.

"Stop, stop, stop." She laughs. "The baby's probably wondering why it's world is spinning around."

He puts her down and high fives her now. "First try without contraception." He kisses her. "I knew I loved you. I'm gonna be a daddy!" Chase is excited. "Come on." He pulls her out of his office.

"Where are we going?"

"I can't wait to see this little bug." He takes her into an exam room with an ultrasound machine. She climbs up on the table and lifts her shirt and unbuttons her pants. Chase rubs the gel on her belly and starts the ultrasound. He finds the blob on the screen. "There it is. There's our baby." Chase tells her.

"Can you see the heart beat?" She asks, looking at the screen.

"Nah, you can't detect the heart beat until after six weeks. It's too early. I just got you pregnant three weeks ago."

"So, then I'm considered five weeks pregnant because they count from your last period?"

"Right. You're five weeks. We'll do another ultrasound next week to look for the heart beat." Chase prints out some pictures of the little blob. "I can't wait to tell my parents."

* * *

Andie lies on the exam table at St. Ambrose while the doctor does a follow up ultrasound. Nicky holds her hand. "Okay," The doctor tells them. "This is the deal. The baby's growth curve has dropped down to the 5th percentile."

"So, that means that the baby is smaller than it should be?" Nicky asks.

"The 50th percentile is considered average. The baby was in the 50th percentile a few months back then the baby dropped to the 25th percentile and now it's at the 5th which means the baby is not growing properly in the uterus."

"What do we do?" Nicky asks.

"We have to deliver the baby today."

"But I still have five more weeks until my due date." Andie's eyes tear up.

"Being born five weeks early isn't much of a problem, babies born five weeks early usually do very well. Depending on their birth weight, we're able to send some to the regular nursery instead of NICU, others we keep in NICU for a few days to observe and let them gain weight if they need too."

"That's good." Nicky let out a sigh in relief.

The doctor clears his throat. "But y_our_ baby will need go to NICU because of it's heart disorder and low birth weight. You'll be able to visit the baby in NICU. That's not a problem. I want you to go up to the labor and delivery wing. I'll tell them you're on the way."

"Okay." Andie sits up on the table. "Are you going to induce me?"

"No. You're having a c-section." The doctor writes in her chart. "As soon as the room is available."

"Why a c-section?" Nicky asks. "She's always delivered naturally."

"I don't want to put any stress on the baby's heart. Some babies get stressed from contractions. We don't want to place any added stress on this baby's heart during the birth."

"Okay." Nicky agrees.

"You need to call my parents." Andie tells Nicky. "They have to keep the kids overnight."

"I will." Nicky helps Andie off the exam table.

* * *

Cooper opens the front door to find Chase and Michelle standing on his doorstep with big smiles plastered across their faces. "You look happy." He lets them in.

"We are." Chase tells Cooper.

Charlotte walks over holding one-year old Michael Nikolas. "Shouldn't you two be at work?"

"We took an early lunch." Chase pats Michael Nikolas on the head.

"You sure you want to spend your lunch hour here?" Charlotte asks. "Andie's havin' an ultrasound done so we've got the boys. Welcome to Romper Room."

"That's great because we need to get used to it real fast." Michelle follows Charlotte into the living room.

Charlotte stares at Michelle, looking at her flat abdomen out of reflex.

"Michelle's pregnant. We just found out." Chase announces with a big grin plastered across his face.

"Congratulations!" Charlotte and Cooper take turns hugging them both. "You don't waste anytime." Cooper tells them. "You just got married three weeks ago."

"This is what we both wanted." Chase sits down on the couch.

"I'm really early." Michelle tells Charlotte and Cooper. She hands them the ultrasound photo's. "I did an early pregnancy test. The baby's heart hasn't even started to beat yet."

"We're going to do another ultraound next week." Chase says, excited. "We should be able to see it start to beat when Tess... I mean Michelle, is six weeks along." Chase can't believe he just did that. He's so excited to be a dad and it slipped out. He hopes nobody caught it.

Michelle's eyes bug open at the slip. He called her Tess. How can he call her Tess at a time like this? She doesn't say anything in front of his parents. She hopes they didn't notice the name slip. Charlotte and Cooper exchange a quick glance with each other. They heard the slip but decide to keep quiet about it at this special moment in Chase and Michelle's lives.

"I'm so happy for you guys." Cooper smacks Chase on the knee. "That's my boy, you need to give Nicky some competition."

"Cooper?" Charlotte furrows her brow,

"What? Nicky's knocked up my little girl four times already."

"And you knocked me up four times." Charlotte answers.

"Technically," Cooper corrects. "I knocked you up seven times." Cooper wishes he didn't say it after it comes out of his mouth.

Michelle screws up her face. "What do you mean seven times?"

"I had an early miscarriage a few months after Noah was born, I think it was too much for my body to handle being pregnant again so soon…-"

Cooper adds. "Then she had two more miscarriages between Noah and Drew."

Charlotte continues "That's why there's a big age gap between Noah and Drew. We kept trying for another baby and I miscarried twice. We were thrilled to death when we had Drew. We didn't think we were going to have another child after all that."

"Why did they say you had all those miscarriages?" Chase asks.

Charlotte shrugs. "We don't know, really. Most early miscarriages are caused by chromosomal abnormalities. It's nature's way to miscarry a baby that wouldn't be able to survive after birth. Other times it can be caused by a hormonal imbalance or a virus. We don't know why I miscarried. They were all very early on, before I was even eight weeks."

Michelle's face drops to a frown.

"We're scaring Michelle. No more miscarriage talk." Cooper tells them.

The phone rings, Cooper answers it and takes the call in another room.

"You'll be fine." Charlotte reassures a worried Michelle. "We shouldn't have brought up my horror stories. Andie's been pregnant four times and hasn't miscarried yet."

Michelle looks over at Chase. "Maybe we shouldn't tell anyone else yet, just in case."

"Are you kidding?" Chase smiles. "I want to shout it to the world."

Cooper comes back in the room. "That was Nicky. The doctor wants to do an emergency c-section on Andie today. She's in the labor and delivery wing at St. Ambrose now."

"Why?" Charlotte asks.

"The baby's not growing properly in the uterus so he wants to take the baby out." Cooper sighs.

"We should go." Charlotte looks for her purse. "Can you watch the boys?" Charlotte asks Chase. "Harper's at school."

Chase looks at his watch. "I have to be back at work in half an hour. I can't cancel my patients today. I just got back from taking three weeks off for the honeymoon."

"I can watch them." Michelle volunteers. She wants to earn brownie points with Chase's family. She tells Chase. "I'm sure if you explain the situation to Amelia and Jolie, they'll understand why I need to take the rest of the day off."

"Okay." Charlotte and Cooper kiss the boys goodbye before running out the door.

Chase looks at Michelle. "Welcome to my crazy family."

Michelle picks up baby Michael Nikolas. "I love your crazy family." She looks down at Charley who's playing with his train set on the floor. "How about some lunch?" She carries Michael Nikolas and holds Charley's hand leading him into the kitchen.

"You're going to make the best mom." Chase follows her into the kitchen to help her make lunch for the boys. "How about macaroni and cheese?" He asks Charley.

"Yay, I wuv it!" Charley claps his chubby little hands.

Michelle buckles Michael Nikolas in the high chair and helps Chase prepare the mac and cheese.

Chase puts his arms around her waist. "I cannot believe you're carrying my firstborn in here." He pats her belly and kisses her neck.

"Kids in the room." She reminds him before thinking to herself; she doesn't like the word firstborn, knowing very well that Tess must have given birth to his firstborn over two months ago.

"Kids in the room." Chase stirs the mac and cheese. "That's right. Once we have kids we can't do it wherever or whenever we want anymore."

Michelle snickers. "Once we have a few kids we'll be too busy and tired to want to do it anymore."

_**MEANWHILE IN GEORIA.**_

Tess takes baby Brayden to the doctor for his well baby visit. "The baby's doing great." Tess's pediatrician friend, Evan, tells her. "He's due for his DTaP vaccination. He was due for it two weeks ago, but I see you cancelled that appointment."

"I didn't want him to have it then. He's been very colicky, I didn't want to add to his misery."

"Well, he looks happy today." The pediatrician draws up the vaccine into a syringe to give the smiley baby.

"Yes." Tess agrees. "He just started to smile last week and now you're gonna turn his smile upside down."

"You're a doctor, Tess. You know this is necessary and it'll be over in a minute. Brayden will be smiling again by the time you get home."

"It's different when it's your own child, Evan. You can't understand until you're a parent." Tess explains.

"Alright." Evan tells her. "Put Brayden on the exam table for me and hold his thigh down tight."

Tess does as told. Little Brayden smiles at his momma. A second later, Evan sticks the needle in his thigh and the infant starts screaming.

"It's okay, sweet baby boy." Tess picks her crying infant up as soon as the shot is done. She holds pressure on his thigh while rocking the baby before she begins to cry herself.

"Are you crying, Tess?"

"He was looking right at me, smiling, when you stuck him with the needle. He doesn't understand why I didn't protect him." A tear leaks down Tess's cheek.

"Even though I'm not a parent, I know it's hard to watch your child experience pain but it was a quick sting, Tess, and he's going to need a lot more vaccinations during his childhood. You gotta get a grip."

Tess rocks the crying baby in her arms while wiping her own tears away. "I know I must look like an idiot crying over a routine shot but I'm very protective of Brayden. I'm all he's got and he trusts me. I'm afraid I just broke that trust."

Evan pats Tess on the shoulder. "Tess, Brayden's two months old, he's not going to hold it against you. Now take him home and I guarantee that he'll be smiling at you again after he wakes up from his afternoon nap."

Tess drives home with the baby and thinks about Chase. He's a pediatrician and Braydens's father, it would be so much easier if he was here doing this with her. She hates having to do it all alone but he's married to that bitch he cheated on her with. She wipes another tear away as she looks in the rear-view mirror at her sleeping baby boy who looks exactly like his daddy.

She talks to a sleeping Brayden as she drives him home to her grandmother's house. "I promise you that I'm not a weak woman. I just really need your dad at times like this." She wipes away a tear. "I'm gonna be strong for now on and give you a helluva good life without a daddy. I can do this. I promise."


	18. Chapter 18

**_CHAPTER 18_**

* * *

Charlotte and Cooper rush up to the labor and delivery wing. "Good afternoon, Dr. King." A nurse greets her.

"Afternoon. Do you know where my daughter, Alexandria Poulos is?"

"She's in C-section room 2." The nurse replies. "You need to put on a mask, gown and hair net before you go in."

"You don't need to tell _me_ that, Vera, I haven't been gone that long."

"Sorry, Dr. King but I have to tell everyone as per hospital policy."

"Fine." Charlotte and Cooper grab the items and gown up. They enter room 2. The obstetrician has already made the cut and is spreading the uterus wall open to obtain the baby. Andie was given an epidural so she can be awake but has no feeling from below the shoulders. Nicky's at her side.

"Hey Charlotte, come and joing the party." The OB-GYN specialist tells her as he fishes his hands around Andie's uterus to pull the baby out. There's a team from NICU waiting for the baby

Charlotte and Cooper walk over to Andie's side. "How's it going?" Cooper asks the doctor.

"I've almost got the baby." After another minute the doctor pulls a small baby out. A nurse cuts the cord and immediately hands the baby over to the NICU team that are waiting. "It's a girl!" The doctor announces while removing the placenta.

"The baby's out?" Andie asks.

"Yep, she's out." The doctor responds.

"Why can't I hear her crying?" Andie asks, anxiously.

"Give her a minute. Let the NICU team do their thing." Three seconds later the baby lets out a cry but it sounds more like a cat meowing than a baby.

Nicky walks over to see the baby. Several NICU nurses examine the baby and give her oxygen. "She looks blue." Nicky comments.

"It's from the heart defect." The doctor tells Nicky. "I explained to you that babies with Tetralogy of Fallot will be blue. It gets worse when they cry which she is doing now."

The nursed try to settle the baby down while offering her oxygen.

Cooper pats Nicky on the back telling him, softly, 'I've treated patients with TET and as soon as they have the surgery the blue appearance goes away. She'll be okay." Cooper tries to reassure Nicky.

"How much does she weigh?" Charlotte asks the NICU nurses.

"She's three pounds and seven ounces." A nurse tells Charlotte.

"That's so small." Andie worries out loud, "Michael Nikolas was nine pounds when I had him last year. He was more than double her weight."

"Michael Nikolas was full term and didin't have any medical problems." Charlotte reminds Andie.

"Out of all your kids she reminds me of Michael the most." Cooper says. "She has dark hair like Michael and light eyes."

"Can I see her?" Andie asks.

"I'll take her." Charlotte tells the NICU nurse. Charlotte carries the baby wrapped up in a pink infant blanket over to Andie.

Andie's eyes pop open and her jaw drops when she sees her baby. "Oh my God, momma. Her face?" Andie notices the bluish gray baby's cleft lip. The lip is opened up and separated up to the bottom of the nose. Andie freezes in shock.

"It's from the cleft lip, Andie." Charlotte tries to comfort her daughter. "She'll be okay once we have it repaired." Nicky looks at the baby briefly before turning his face to focus on a poster of the human body on the wall. He fights back his own tears. He doesn't want to cry in front of his in-laws or the nurses.

"Jolie will fix her right up." Charlotte tells Andie. "She does these surgeries all the time."

Cooper tries to cheer the distraught couple up. "Jolie's so good at cleft lip repairs that you won't even see a scar."

"Do you want to hold her?" Charlotte asks. "Before they take her to NICU?"

Andie declines. "It'd probably be easier for Nicky to hold her since I'm lying flat. Nicky hold the baby!"

Nicky turns his face back around out of obligation. Charlotte hands Nicky the small baby.

Nicky gazes at the baby now and fights back his tears. "I'm sorry, baby girl. I'm so sorry."

Cooper pats Nicky on the back. "There's nothing to be sorry about. None of this is your fault and once she has the surgeries on her lip and her heart she'll be good as new." Cooper sugar coats it. The baby's going to need several major surgeries to repair her problems.

"When can we do the surgery?" Nicky asks the doctor. "I want it done as soon as possible."

"She's too small to do it now." The doctor tells Nicky. "We like to wait until they're four to six months old to do the surgery so they're stronger. We run into less complications the bigger and stronger the baby is."

"You mean she has to live like this for four to six months?" Nicky asks.

"It's in the baby's best interest to wait until she's stronger." Cooper tells Nicky.

The doctor explains to them. "I want to insert a feeding tube into the baby's stomach this week. We can do it in the procedure room in the NICU."

"Why?" Andie asks.

"Babies born with Tetralogy of Fallot are often poor feeders. They expend too much energy trying to eat _and_ on top of it your baby has the cleft lip and palate which will make it even more difficult for her to eat. We'll feed her by the tube until she has the surgeries." The doctor continues. "You can give her a little breast milk or formula by the bottle to satisfy her need to suck but as soon as she starts to tire you need to stop and feed her by the tube."

Andie stares at the baby in Nicky's arms. "Shouldn't we give her oxygen? She's blue."

A NICU nurse explains. "We can give her oxygen but it's not going to help a great deal. Her heart is pumping the oxygenated blood in the wrong direction. It's going to her lungs instead of her body. The oxygen may help but she's still going to appear blue."

The doctor adds. "You'll want to give her extra oxygen when she has a tet spell or when she's eating."

"What's a tet spell?" Andie asks.

"I'll explain it to you later." Charlotte tells Andie. "Right now we need to get this peanut to the NICU."

"We're ready to take her to the now " A nurse tells Charlotte. "We just wanted to give the family a little time with her first."

"I understand." Charlotte nods.

"I'll go with them." Cooper tells Andie and Nicky. "I won't let her out of my sight. Does she have a name yet?"

Nicky looks down at the blue-gray baby with the black hair and cleft lip. "Hope." He nods. "I want to name her Hope."

Cooper nods and takes the black haired baby girl from him. "For obvious reasons." Cooper agrees.

Charlotte tells them, "believe it or not there's a town in Alabama named Mount Hope, so we're still honoring my family tradition."

"That's nice." Nicky says. He could care less about the family tradition at this moment.

"How about Hope Charlotte?" Andie asks Nicky. "Since Harper has your grandmother's name as her middle name?"

"Hope Charlotte sounds good." Nicky agrees.

"I love it." Cooper chuckles. "But you have to name your next baby Cooper." He tries to lighten the mood in the room.

"Daddy!" Andie exclaims. "We're done. Sorry you're not going to get your Cooper. You'll have to ask Chase for a baby named Cooper."

Cooper waves as he follows the NICU nurses with the baby out of the room.

Charlotte decides this isn't a good time to tell Andie and Nicky that Chase and Michelle are already expectin' and that baby Cooper or Cooperina is on the way.

Nicky holds Andie's hand while the doctor sutures her belly up. Nicky thinks about how his band is supposed to go on a road tour in four months. He hasn't mentioned it to Andie yet. He figured the baby would have the surgeries shortly after birth and be out of the woods by the time his band went on the road. No, this is definitely not the time to tell her.

"Everything's going to be alright, Sweet Pea" Charlotte rubs Andie's head.

"I _hope_ so." Andie tells her momma.

"Did I pick the perfect name for her or what?" Nicky tries to lighten the mood.

Andie nods. "I like it for the meaning, Hope, and I like it because it starts with an H, like Harper."

"Harper's going to be so happy." Nicky smiles now. "I can't wait to tell her she has a baby sister."

Andie thinks out loud. "Harper's going to freak when she sees the baby. I know I'm her momma and shouldn't say this but she's scary looking. She looks like a baby from a horror film."

"Belle?" Nicky looks at Andie. "Don't say that about our baby."

"Come on, Nicky, she's my child and I love her but let's be honest, she's scrawny, her skin is a grey-blue and her mouth is split open in half. The kids are going to be scared of her."

"We'll prepare them." Charlotte tells Andie.

"It's going to freak them out. They'll have nightmares." Andie worries.

Nicky chimes in. "I thought they were going to do the surgery two weeks after she was born. I didn't think we had to wait until she was four to six months old."

"You have to do what's best for the baby." Charlotte tells Nicky. "She's not strong enough to undergo those major surgeries yet."

Andie sighs. "I hope that Hope will be okay, my poor baby." Andie sighs. "I wonder what they're doing to her now?"

"You're father is watching out for her." Charlotte tries to be reassuring. "Your dad's a pediatrician. He's right there with her."

Andie swallows. "Thank you, momma. Thank you for everything you do for us."

Charlotte smiles now. Andie doesn't need to thank her. She wouldn't want to be anywhere else in the world right now but it's still nice to hear. "You don't need to thank me, Sweet Pea, you may be a momma of four little ones now but you're still _my _baby girl."

Andie squeezes her hand and wonders how as much as she's worried about baby Hope right now, her momma feels the same way about her. It brings tears to her eyes. "I love you, momma." She says softly.

"I love you too, Sweet Pea, everything is going to be okay, you hear me?"

"Mmhmm." Andie nods. It feels good to have her momma with her no matter how old she is.

"Okay." The doctor announces. "We're done here. We're going to bring you to the OB recovery room until you have all the feeling back in your legs and back, then we'll move you to a patient room."

"When can I see my baby?" Andie asks.

The doctor answers. "It'll be a few hours so hang tight and try to relax and enjoy some time to yourselves. You're going to be very busy the next few days with this new baby."

"Aha." Nicky nods, looking at Andie. "Enjoy the quiet time while we can get it because I don't think we're going to get much time to ourselves from now on."

Charlotte looks on thinking the same is true for her and Cooper. Andie's going to need to lean on them like never before.


	19. Chapter 19

_**CHAPTER 19**_

* * *

Noah's hanging out in his off campus apartment with Marley when he receives the call from his momma. "Your sister had the baby."

"I thought she wasn't due for over a month?"

"She had her five weeks early."

"Is she okay?"

"The baby or Andie?" Charlotte asks.

"Both, I guess."

"The baby, they named her Hope Charlotte, is in the Nicu. She's small, only three pounds seven ounces and she has a heart defect that requires surgery and a cleft lip and palate. So, it's going to be a long road these next few months until she's old enough to have the surgery."

"Do you want me and Marley to come home?" Noah asks.

"That's up to you, if you want to come home just for the weekend so you and Marley don't miss any classes. We miss you."

"I was just home last month, momma, for Chase's wedding."

"That's another thing, Chase and Michelle just found out she's pregnant"

"Guess it was a honeymoon baby."

"That was their plan."

"I'll call Chase and Andie and tell them both congratulations on their baby news, later."

"Okay, I'm gonna go, love you, Noah."

"Love you, momma, maybe I'll see you this weekend."

Noah hangs up and is just about to tell Marley the news when Marley's phone rings. "It's Lila." Marley tells Noah. "Let me take this call."

"Hey, Lila, what's up?"

"Remember when we went to Chase's wedding last month and were smoking?"

"Yeah." Marley laughs. "How could I forget?"

"Well you remember our foursome?"

Marley laughs again. "I'll never forget it as long as I live."

"Well, neither will I." Lila says, "But for a different reason than you."

"Explain, please."

Lila informs. "I'm pregnant."

"Whoa! Are you sure it's from that night?" Marley nearly drops her phone.

"I don't have a boyfriend. Besides that night, I haven't had sex with anyone in almost a year. That's why I wasn't on the pill. I wasn't expecting that to happen."

"None of us were." Marley answers. "It was the most spontaneous thing I ever did."

"Me too."

"It's a good thing we didn't switch partners so at least you know it was Dylan who knocked you up."

"Yeah, that would've been messy. Good thing Dylan's your half brother so none of us were even tempted to switch."

"Yeah...What are you going to do now?"

"I'm definitely keeping it. I'm twenty-four years old. I can do this."

"What did Dylan say?" Marley asks.

"I didn't tell him. It's not like we're a couple anyway. I don't know if he has a girlfriend, do you?"

"If he does, he hasn't mentioned her but you know Dylan, he doesn't really talk about his personal stuff."

Lila continues, "I'm probably going to drop out of medical school after this semester is over. Then I'll go back after the baby is born."

"What will your parents say?"

"I'm twenty four so they can't really say much to me. I'm a full fledged adult."

"When are you going to tell Dylan?"

"I don't know, definitely not yet. I'm only a month pregnant. I want to see if the pregnancy sticks first before I say anything. I needed to tell someone that's why I called you."

"Well congratulations, I think."

"I'm happy, I love babies. Me and this little one will be just fine together." Lila taps her tiny belly. "Besides, I don't have a boyfriend, at this rate who knows if I'd ever be able to have kids if I waited."

"You're only twenty-four Lila. It's not like you're an old maid. You still have time to find a guy."

"Well, if this pregnancy sticks. I'll have a different priority but I'm cool with that. I have to get ready for class. I'll call you this weekend."

"Take care of yourself." Marley hangs up.

"What was that about?" Noah asks.

"Lila's pregnant. She got pregnant from our foursome the day of Chase's wedding."

"Ooops!" Noah chuckles a little. "You know that means we're partially responsible for her conceiving that baby?"

"It's a good thing we didn't switch partners or you could have been the father. She's not on the pill."

"Whew! That _is_ a relief. Poor Dylan."

"Dylan doesn't know yet so don't tell him." Marley warns. "Lila wants to wait to see if the pregnancy sticks before she tells anyone. She's only one month pregnant now."

"How's she coping with it?"

"She seemed okay. If it sticks she wants to keep it, no doubt about it. She's into being a mom."

"What about medical school?"

"She plans to take a year off when the baby's born."

"Chase and Michelle got pregnant on their honeymoon and Andie had a baby girl, my mother called to tell me."

"Geez, it's like baby palooza. We're the only ones who won't have a kid." Marley comments.

"We'll have a kid after medical school, we'll get married and start having babies or are you going to pull a Tess on me and want to wait until you're done with residency and have your career established?" Noah asks.

"No, I want one soon. I want it to grow up with all these other babies."

"Ha, ha, good answer."

"But we have to wait until after we're married or my mother will kill me." Marley warns Noah.

"Your twenty four. Why are you still worried about your mother?"

"You know how Jolie is when Jolie's not happy. I don't want to scorn her."

"Okay, okay." Noah laughs. "We'll wait until after we get married."

* * *

Charlotte enters the NICU to find Cooper sitting next to the isolette. He has his hand sticking through one of the holes and he's stroking the baby's back with his finger."

"How is she?" Charlotte sits down in the chair next to him.

"She's hanging in there, poor thing. The doctor came by. He wants to put in the g-tube tomorrow morning. This peanut can't afford to lose any weight."

"Where's Nicky?" Charlotte looks around.

"He went home to check on the kids and relieve Michelle. She took off from work again today to watch them."

"Michelle has been a big help." Charlotte nods.

"I still miss Tess." Cooper tells Charlotte. "But Michelle has really grown on me too. She's a good kid."

"Yup." Charlotte nods.

* * *

Michelle puts Michael Nikolas and Charley to sleep while Nicky tucks Harper in.

"When can I see my sister, poppa?" Harper asks.

"Soon, rabbit. She was born early, she's small and in the NICU. They don't allow children into the NICU."

"Why not?"

"Because little bugs like you," he tweaks her nose, "carry all kinds of germs you pick up at school and the playground and those little babies can't fight off the germs like a big girl like you can."

"When can she come home?"

"When she's bigger." Nicky gives Harper a kiss on the top of her head. "Now, you need to go to sleep. You have school tomorrow."

"I want to name the baby Ashley Amanda." Harper tells her daddy.

"Why's that?"

"Because that's the name of my favorite American Girl Doll and I like that name." Harper says proudly.

"Your momma and I already named the baby Hope Charlotte." Nicky tells her.

"That's a weird name." Harper scrunches up her nose.

"Why's it weird?" Nicky pokes Harper, playfully, in the belly. "Your momma and I like it because we _hope_ she has a good life and it starts with an H like your name. We named her Charlotte after your grandma just like we gave you Ava as a middle name after my grandma. What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing." Harper shrugs. "I just think Ashley Amanda sounds better."

"Tell you what, when you're all grown up you can name your daughter Ashley Amanda, okay? We'll save that name for you, rabbit."

"Okay, poppa. I love you." Harper gives her daddy a kiss goodnight.

"Nite, rabbit." Nicky gives Harper another kiss on the cheek before he leaves the room. He calls Benn Golder on the phone as he walks downstairs.

"Benn, is there anyway we could delay the tour a few months?" Nicky asks.

"No sirree." Benn answers. "Your band is booked solid already. Once the tickets went on sale they were eaten up the first week."

"My bambino's sick and needs to have heart surgery about the same time we go on the road."

"I'm sorry about your baby, Nick, I really am but if you cancel this tour your career is over. The fans will be upset and the record label will drop your band."

"Can you get someone to fill in for me?" Nicky sighs. "Just for a month when the baby has the surgery?"

"You're the lead singer. People are paying good money to see _you_."

Nicky sighs, heavily.

Benn continues."Look, I feel for ya, dude, I do. I got a kid too and sometimes we need to work around them. How about this? The concerts are scheduled from Thursday nights to Sunday afternoons. Tell the docs they have to do the surgery on a Monday or Tuesday morning. You can fly home Sunday night to be with the kid before the surgery and fly back to the band on Thursday morning. As long as your back in time to perform Thursday night I don't care what else you do."

"I guess I can do that."

"This way you can be there for your family, the band, and your fans."

"Okay." Nicky nods and hangs up.

"What's wrong?" Michelle asks Nicky as she grabs her purse to go home. "Is it the baby?"

"No." Nicky tells Michelle. "My band is going on tour in four months and the doctor's want to schedule Hope's surgeries about the same time."

"Oy!" Michelle grits her teeth. "Can the band re-schedule the tour?"

"No. I was just asking Benn about that. It's our first big tour of our own, we're not opening for anyone. Another band is opening for _us_. He said if we cancel the fans will be upset. We want to make more fans not uspet the ones we already have. The concerts on the east coast are sold out already."

"What are you going to do?" Michelle asks.

"The band has off Sunday night to Wednesday night. I'll try to get the doctor to schedule the surgery on a Monday. I'll fly home Sunday night before the surgery and fly back Thursday morning."

"What does Andie think?"

"She doesn't know yet. I didn't want to tell her about the tour until everything was okay with the baby. She hates when I go on tour. I don't want to give her another thing to worry about. I figured I'd tell her after the surgery but now the doctor's want to wait until the baby's four to six months old. I thought they would do it after she was born."

"They want her body to be as strong as possible when they operate so if there are any complications she can handle it better." Michelle explains.

Michelle's phone rings. She talks a few minutes and tells Nicky. "That was Chase checking up on me. He wants to make sure I get enough rest. He monitors how much I eat and sleep, it's crazy."

Nicky laughs. "Good luck dealing with that for the rest of your pregnancy. You've got a long way to go."

'I know." Michelle rolls her eyes.

Nicky tells her. "You do look tired though. Go home and get some rest and thanks for watching the kids these past couple days. I don't know what we would have done without you."

"Anytime." Michelle smiles as she leaves.


	20. Chapter 20

_**Chapter 20**_

* * *

Nicky walks in Andie's hospital room with two bouquets, one with long stem roses and one with daisies. He gives her a quick but soft kiss. "These are from me," he hands her the roses. " And these these are from the kids," he hands her the daisies. "They picked them from your momma's garden before I left to come here."

"Does my momma know they picked her daisies?" Andie smells the flowers.

"Uh...no." Nicky sticks his hands in his pockets. "I took the flowers from them and got the hell outta there as fast as I could."

"I'll bet." Andie answers, sounding amused.

Nicky fills a plastic container with water for the flowers.

Andie watches... "Mmm," she inhales. "I can't decide which I like better, the roses or the daisies?"

"You better say mine." Nicky places the flowers in the tall container. "I just shelled out eighty five bucks for them. The daisies were free."

Andie laughs. "Yeah but now that she's retired, my momma put blood, sweat and tears into tending her garden."

Nicky places the flowers on a table near her bed. "Your momma says they're planning to discharge you today."

"Yeah." Andie nods. "I've already been here five days, my c-section incision is healing nicely so I don't have a choice."

"You want me to poke at it to make it red or something so you can stay in the hospital and be pampered a little longer?" Nicky jokes.

"No." Andie rolls her eyes. "It's just that I've never left the hospital without my baby. Hope Charlotte isn't going to be ready to come home for a couple more weeks the doctors say."

"It's rough but we can come up and visit her in NICU everyday."

"What did you tell the kids about her?" Andie asks.

"I wanted to wait for you to talk to them. I told Harper that her baby sister was in NICu because she was born early and small."

"You didn't tell her about the heart problem or the cleft lip?"

"Nope. I figured we would talk to her about it together."

Andie raises her eyebrows. "I wonder how she'll take it?"

"I don't know," Nicky shakes his head. "It was hard for us to digest. How is an eight year old supposed to handle it?"

* * *

Drew comes home from school with a black eye. "What happened to you? Cooper asks.

"I got into a fight."

"I can see that." Cooper pads into the kitchen to grab an ice pack out of the freezer.

Harper scampers up to Drew. "What happened?"

"I stood up to Kyle."

"Good for you. I'm proud of you." Harper tells her uncle.

"Yeah, but look at my face."

"You look tough with the black eye. Nobody's gonna pick on you now."

Cooper hands Drew the ice pack. "You wanna tell me about it?"

"Not really." Drew takes the backpack and heads upstairs.

Cooper shakes his head before he tells Harper. "He's just like your momma was when she was a teenager, she would keep secrets from us and never tell us what was going on in her life, meanwhile, we were the ones that could help her."

"I know what's wrong with Drew." Harper boasts. "He talks to me."

"Tell me, Sweetie." Cooper prompts Harper. He sits down next to her on the couch.

"The kids are always teasing him because he's short. At the park one of them said I could be his girlfriend because I'm almost as tall as Drew."

Cooper curls his lip. "Drew has to learn to ride it out. He'll shoot up once he has a growth spurt."

"But in the meantime, what can he do? The kids are so mean to him."

"Kids can be cruel." Cooper nods. "It's always been that way even when I was a kid back in the dark ages." Cooper chuckles.

"What did they tease you about, grandpa."

"They called me a nerd."

"Why?" Harper asks.

"I liked to read a lot, I always had my nose in a book and it didn't help the way my mother dressed me. If it was up to my mother I would have worn sailor suits until high school." Cooper makes a goofy face.

"Oh." Harper lets out a litte snicker. "What did you do?"

"I rode it out. It got better once I was in college. I was actually popular in college."

"That's a long time for Drew to wait. What can he do now?" Harper asks, concerned for her fourteen year old Uncle Drew.

"Drew needs to change his attitude, instead of getting upset about it he needs to find the humor in it. If he lets those kids see it doesn't bother him it won't be fun for them to tease him."

"Yeah." Harper agrees, "I love teasing Charley, he gets so mad. His face gets red and he throws things at me when I tease him."

"Right." Cooper says. "But if Charley laughed along with you or acted like he didn't care about the teasing it wouldn't be fun for you and you'd stop."

"I guess." Harper shrugs. "But it's so much fun to tease Charley. He gets so mad. Let me go find him." Harper jumps off the couch and scampers into the playroom looking for her three-year old brother."

"Oy." Cooper rubs his head.

* * *

Michelle comes home from work and drops her purse on the couch. She feels a little crampy today but everyone at work told her it was probably just her ligaments stretching with the growing pregnancy. She lies down and thinks about it. She's only going to be six weeks pregnant tomorrow and as a nurse she knows that the uterus doesn't start growing this early so she shouldn't feel the ligaments stretching yet. She feels the tears come to her eyes as she thinks of reasons she should feel this way. Maybe I'm having twins or triplets she thinks so the uterus is growing faster than it normally should, that will explain the cramps. She flips the television on and tries not to think about it for awhile. After about an hour of resting with her feet up and watching television she feels better.

"Hey Michelle. I'm home." Chase greets her with a cheery smile.

"Hi babe." Michelle gets up to greet him at the door. I just woke up from a nap so I didn't start dinner yet."

"That's fine. Let's go out for dinner. I'm in the mood for Italian."

"Going out to eat is fine by me." Michelle grabs her purse and they make the short drive to the restaurant. As they drive, her cramps come back along with the tears.

"What's wrong?" Chase asks.

Michelle sniffles. "I'm scared."

"Of what?"

"I'm having cramps again."

Chase rubs her arm. "It's normal to have some cramping in early pregnancy."

"They're getting stronger." Michelle worries. "I think I might be having a miscarriage."

"Chillax." Chase tells her as they pull into the parking lot. "You're a worry wart. Stop worrying so much,"

"I'll try." She snorts while wiping her tears with a tissue. "I've had a bad feeling all day since these cramps started."

"Try to forget about it over dinner, just relax, the stress isn't good for you or the baby." Chase parks and they get out of the car.

Chase walks around to Michelle's side of the car to hold her hand as they walk into the restaurant. She's wearing light blue jeans. Chase gulps when he notices a large bright red blood stain on the back of her pants.

Chase prompts. "Get back in the car."

"Why?" She asks.

"There's blood on the back of your pants." He helps her into the car.

"Oh no!" Michelle rubs the back of her pants with her hand, she feels the wetness. "Oh no!" She quickly scurries back into the passenger seat of Chase's car.

Chase gets in the drivers seat and grabs her hand as he starts up the car to drive home. "It's okay."

"No. It's not okay. I'm crampy and there's blood, it's not okay." Michelle freaks. "I told you the cramps weren't okay. I'm having a miscarriage."

"We'll try again next month." He rubs her knee. "A lot of women miscarry with the first pregnancy. It's fairly common."

"We told everyone already." Michelle blows her nose. "Everyone thinks I'm pregnant and now I'm not anymore."

"We'll try again next month." He comforts her. "It'll be okay." Tears come to his eyes now to as they drive home.

* * *

Marley's studying with Noah in their off campus apartment near John Hopkins Medical School when her phone rings.

"What's up, Lila?"

"I'm so excited." Lila's voice is high pitched. "I had to call someone."

"Why?"

"I had a sonogram today. I'm six weeks pregnant. I got to see and hear the heartbeat. It was so narley."

"Good for you." Marley tells her. "When are you going to tell Dylan?"

"I don't know. I haven't spoken to Dylan since we had sex the day of Chase's wedding. That was over a month ago."

"Ha, ha." Marley chuckles. "You haven't spoken to him since he got you preggers?"

"No, we don't usually talk unless we're home in LA. He has his life in Texas and I'm here at Duke."

"Well, then, we'll all have to plan a trip back home to LA soon so you can see him again and give him the news. Noah wants to go home anyway to see his new niece."

"How is she?"

"In bad shape. She has a serious heart defect that makes her blue and she has a cleft lip and palate which my mom is going to repair in a few months."

"That sucks. I pray that my baby will be healthy."

"I'm sure it will, Lila. So, do you want me to call Dylan and arrange for us to all meet up in LA next weekend?"

"I guess. I don't know if I'm going to tell him I'm pregnant yet since it's so early. The doctors say you're not safe from miscarriage until the twelfth week of pregnancy. I think I'll just bring up the idea of babies in front of Dylan and see if he even likes them."

"Sounds good, I'll call him and see if he can meet us in LA next weekend?"

"What are you going to say?" Lila asks.

"Just that Noah and I are going home to see Andie's new baby which we are. I'll say that you happen to be going home to visit your parents that same weekend and I'll see if he wants to meet up with us?"

Lila laughs. "He's probably going to think your setting up another towel orgy."

"Hey, if that's what it takes to see if he likes kids or if he even has a girlfriend in Texas. I'm willing to do it." Marley tells her.

"But no joints this time. I shouldn't be around that stuff cuz I'm pregnant."

"That's right."

"What are we going to tell him if he brings weed?" Lila worries.

"Noah and I will say we don't want to get hooked on it. We smoked it last month and that's enough. I mean that really is the first time Noah and I smoked since high school."

"He's going to think we turned into a bunch of frumpy duds." Lila tells her.

"Let him, at least we'll have a reason not to smoke instead of telling him you're pregnant."

"Okay." I have to go. My roommate just put her key in the door. I don't want her to know what we were talking about."

"Bye." Marley hangs up,

"What did Lila want?" Noah asks.

"She's all excited, she saw the baby's heart beat today."

"Wow." Noah looks up from his Nook. "She's really into being pregnant, huh?"

"Yup." .

"Somehow, I don't think Dylan is going to share her excitement."

"I don't have any sympathy for Dylan." Marley tells Noah. "He had a fuckin' good time screwing her. He didn't think about putting a condom on."

"Yeah, but we were all high. He wasn't exactly thinking normal that night." Noah defends.

"Dylan's the one who brought the weed to the wedding and corrupted the rest of us into smoking it leading to the towel orgy. I don't feel sorry for him. If I feel sorry for anyone it's Lila."

"Except." Noah points out. "Lila seems to be happy she got pregnant. You just said she was all excited to see the baby's heartbeat."

Marley sighs. "I guess it's not of my business, but it's a little whacked if you ask me."

"We're talking about Lila here, Marz Barz, since when hasn't Lila been a little whacked."

"Yeah." Marley nods. "I think Lila and Dylan would be good together."

"Maybe." Noah snickers before going back to reading his Nook.


	21. Chapter 21

_**Chapter 21**_

* * *

Charlotte and Cooper greet Noah and Marley at the front door with hugs. "How was your flight?" Charlotte asks as they walk into the living room. Noah carries in only his bag since Marley will be staying at her mother, Jolie's house.

"Our flight was good, long but good." Noah plops down on the couch.

"So, how's life at John Hopkins's?" Cooper asks.

"Fun but a lot of work." Marley sits next to Noah on the couch. She pulls a tiny blue t-shirt out of Noah's bag. It says, 'I love Maryland,' and has a big red heart on it." We bought this for Chase and Michelle's baby." Marley holds up the tiny blue shirt.

Charlotte and Cooper focus their gaze on the t-shirt but don't say anything.

Marley notices their sullen expressions. "It only came in pink or blue. We figured a girl could wear blue more than a boy could wear pink but I'll take it back if you don't like. We plan to get them something nice when the baby is...-"

Charlotte holds her hand up to stop her. "It's not that. The shirt is adorable." Charlotte hesitates before telling them. "Michelle had a miscarriage last week."

"Oh?" Marley shoves the shirt back in the bag. "I'm sorry to hear that."

"Don't say anything when you see them." Charlotte warns. "They're both taking it pretty hard."

"I won't say anything," Marley agrees.

"That's too bad. They wanted a baby really bad." Noah looks over at Marley. "We can save the t-shirt for…never mind." Noah stops himself, remembering he's not supposed to tell anyone Lila's pregnant.

"For who?" Cooper asks. "Who can you save the t-shirt for?"

"A friend of ours who is also pregnant." Marley responds. "She got pregnant about the same time as Michelle, she's early too."

"Who?" Cooper asks.

"Just a friend, dad." Noah shrugs.

"It's you isn't it?" Charlotte asks Marley.

"NO!" Marley exclaims. "Why would you think that?" Marley checks her belly to see if she's looking fat.

"Because." Cooper explains. "Usually when someone refers to a friend and doesn't want to mention the name they're talking about themselves."

"It's not me." Marley tells them. "We're very careful. My mother would kill us if I got pregnant before I was married."

"So, this friend is pregnant and not married?" Cooper asks.

"Right." Marley nods.

"It's Lila." Charlotte narrows her eyes. "Isn't it?"

"How'd you know?" Noah asks.

"We don't know any of your friends in Maryland, why else would you with-hold the name unless it was someone we knew." Charlotte explains. "_And_ Violet told me Lila's been acting strange lately."

"How is she acting strange?" Marley asks.

"Lila told Violet she wants to drop out of medical school and become a photographer."

"Really?" Marley asks. "Lila didn't tell me that."

"She just decided. She told Violet her heart wasn't in medicine. She only applied to med school to please Violet and Pete. She wants to follow her dream to be a photographer."

Marley shrugs. "Well, Lila was always the artsy type. She's an excellent painter too."

Cooper snickers. "That's because Vi used to have her paint pictures as a young child to express how she was feeling, it's a hazard of having a shrink for a mother."

Noah reminds Cooper. "Just like you were always chasing us around the house with your otoscope to look in our ears when we were little."

"Hey!" Cooper protests, playfully. "I always caught your ear infections before they got bad. You should be thanking me."

"Who's the father?" Charlotte asks.

"What father?" Marley tries to play dumb.

"The father of Lila's baby." Charlotte folds her arm and asks.

"Huh?" Noah tries to get out of answering.

"Good God, is it you, Noah?" Charlotte asks.

"No." Noah screws up his face. "Why would you say that?"

"Because, again," Cooper points out. "You're avoiding the question."

Charlotte's eyes twinkle with a thought. "It's Dylan isn't it?"

"Damn, momma, you're good." Noah smiles.

"But you can't say anything to anyone." Marley warns them. "We're the only ones who know that Lila's pregnant, Dylan doesn't even know so you can't tell anyone."

"I didn't know Lila and Dylan were a couple." Charlotte tells them.

"They're not." Noah tells her. "It was a one time thing. Lila lives at Duke University and Dylan's in Texas."

"So when did they get together to concieve this baby?" Cooper asks.

Charlotte answers. "At Chase and Michelle's wedding."

"Momma gets it again." Noah high fives Charlotte.

Charlotte shrugs. "Doesn't take a rocket science to figure it out, Marley said Lila got pregnant the same time as Michelle. We know Michelle got pregnant on her wedding night or the honeymoon."

"Life is whacked." Noah rubs his head. "Lila's still pregnant and didn't even try to be, yet Michelle lost her baby. Chase and Michelle are married and ready to have kids. Why did Michelle lose her baby instead of Lila?"

"Things happen for a reason." Cooper pats Noah on the back. "We don't always know what the reason is but things happen for a reason."

* * *

Harper hops down the steps. "Is dinner ready yet, momma?"

"Yep!" Andie calls out. "Poppa and the boys are at the table, we're just waitin' on you."

Harper scampers into the kitchen and hops into her seat. "Yay! Sketti and meatballs, my favorite."

"We wanted to talk to you about something, rabbit." Nicky tells his daughter.

"What?" Harper twirls her spaghetti on a fork.

"Well." Andie starts. "We might be able to bring baby Hope home next week."

"Yay! I can't wait to see my little sister."

"We need to talk to you about that."

"Why?" Harper bites into a meatball.

Andie swallows before she begins. "Hope Charlotte doesn't look like other babies that you've seen."

"What does she look like?"

Andie starts out explaining. "She has black hair like daddy and Michael Nikolas and light eyes like me, you and Charley...-"

"What's so different about that?" Harper shrugs.

Nicky takes over. "Hope Charlotte has something wrong with her heart that makes her skin look a blue color and it turns even more blue when she cries."

"What's wrong with her heart?" Harper asks.

"It's called Tetralogy of Fallot and it means there are a few different things wrong with her heart but I don't want you to worry. The doctors are going to fix her heart and make it all better with surgery but we need to wait until she's a little bigger and stronger." Nicky explains.

"Hopie's heart will be better?" Charley asks.

"Yes," Andie smiles at him. "Hopie's heart will be better."

"So, her skin won't be blue anymore?" Harper asks.

"Right." Nicky nods. "After the surgery she won't look blue anymore but before the surgery she's going to have a tube in her nose to give her oxygen."

"Oh." Harper twirls more spaghetti onto her fork.

"Hopie also has a problem with her upper lip and mouth." Andie tells the children.

"What's wrong with her lip and mouth?" Harper slurps on her spaghetti.

"They didn't close up in the middle like they should have so there's a split in her mouth and lip but the doctors will fix that with an operation too."

"Oh." Harper looks confused.

Nicky takes over. "And because of these problems she can't eat like other babies so the doctor put a tube in her tummy where we can pour her formula in."

Harper scrunches up her face. "You mean I can't feed her a bottle?"

"You can after she has the surgery." Andie tells Harper.

"When is that going to be?"

"In a few more months."

Harper pouts. "I wanted to feed her now. I told all my friends that I had a new baby sister and I could feed her bottles."

"You can after her surgery, rabbit." Nicky tells her.

"Hopie is really a sweet baby." Andie tells Harper. "She's like a little doll. I know your going to love her once you meet her."

"Do you have any pictures of her?" Harper asks.

"As a matter of fact I do." Nicky pulls out his smart phone and finds the picture to show Harper and Charley. He holds the phone in front of them so they can see.

Harper's eyes widen at the same time her jaw drops open. She pushes Nicky's hand holding the phone away from her. "I don't want her! I don't want her! I don't want that sister!" Harper runs out of the kitchen.

"That baby looks yucky." Charley tells Andie and Nicky.

"She's not yucky, Charley." Andie pleads. "It's just her mouth that's broken but we're going to fix it. Look at her eyes. Aren't they pretty?"

Charley doesn't look back at the picture. He gets out of his seat and leaves the kitchen in search of his big sister.

"What do we do?" Andie asks Nicky.

Nicky shrugs, twirling his spaghetti on the fork. "Honestly, Belle, I was shocked when I first saw the baby's mouth. Hope looks beautiful to me now that I can see past her mouth and it'll be the same way with Harper and Charley. They need to get over the initial shock, it's better that we prepared them for it now than waited until Hope came home."

"Okay." Andie finishes her dinner, hoping Nicky's right about that.

* * *

Chase joins Michelle on the couch. "You sure I can't make you anything for dinner?" Chase asks. "You've hardly eaten this past week."

"I'm not in the mood for food." Michelle says, somberly.

Chase squeezes Michelle's knee. "You heard Addison Montgomery; a lot of women miscarry the first time. We'll try again next month."

"I wish I could just fast forward to next month and be pregnant again." Michelle grumps.

"If you try not to think about it the time will pass faster." Chase offers his advice.

"I wish I could stop thinking about it. The next time I get pregnant we're not telling anyone until I'm at least four months. I hate when everyone asks me how I'm feeling. I have to explain to them that I lost the baby. It feels awkward and they feel terrible for asking. It's a mess."

"You should send an announcement out on your facebook page so nobody says anything." Chase suggests.

"Not everyone looks at facebook, Chase, and besides that's too personal. I don't want to do that."

"What can I do to cheer you up?" Chase asks.

"Nothing." Michelle shrugs. "Do you think it was a boy or girl?" Michelle asks.

"I don't know." Chase tells her. "You weren't even six weeks yet when you miscarried, there's no way of knowing."

"I can't imagine women who lose their babies later on like when there six months or more. That's got to be horrible." Michelle rests her head on Chase's shoulder.

"Or" Chase adds. "If they lose the baby after birth or even in childhood, that's really sad."

"Yeah," Michelle wipes her tears away. "Look at your sister and Nicky. Their baby has to have major heart surgery and other surgeries besides that. That's got to be scary."

"Everyone's got their own junk to worry about." Chase tells Michelle.

"I feel selfish now." Michelle tells him.

"Why?"

"I'm sitting here crying over a baby who wasn't even developed enough to have a heart beat and your sister and Nicky are going through hell with worry over Hope Charlotte."

Chase puts his arm around Michelle. "We both wanted this baby. We had big plans for him or her. It's okay to grieve for the dream, Michelle."

"I love you." Michelle kisses his chin.

"Right back at ya, kid." Chase holds Michelle tight and flips on the television with the remote. Michelle rests her head on his shoulder and feels a little better now.


	22. Chapter 22

_**CHAPTER 22**_

* * *

Drew walks in the door after school. "What are the rug rats doing here?" He watches Michael Nikolas practicing his first steps. He toddles and falls between Charlotte and Cooper's outstretched arms.

Charlotte's sitting on the floor, she holds her arms out for the toddler to waddle over to her while she answers Drew's question. "Andie and Nicky are bringing Hope home from the hospital today, we're keeping the kids out of their hair."

"Do I hafta go to school tomorrow, Grandpa?" Harper gives him her sad puppy dog eyed look.

Cooper looks at her eyes quickly before looking away. "I'm afraid you do, Munchkin, you have a big exam tomorrow."

Harper gives a few exaggerated coughs. She starts her sick audition in a scratchy barely audible voice. "Grandpa, my..." She gives a deep gulp followed by a doubtful swallow. "My throat hurts." She rubs her nose trying to smear any snot she can conjure up across her face.

Drew laughs at her.

Charlotte looks pointedly at her granddaughter. "That doesn't work at our house."

"But I'm sick."

Charlotte decides to have some fun. "The best cure for that is a steamin' hot bowl of pea soup."

"Narley." Drew grimaces. "Especially the way dad makes it without any ham."

"Hey!" Cooper protests. "It's healthier that way."

"No." Drew disagrees. "It's bland and watery. It' more like pea water."

"Yuck! I hate pea soup" Harper places her hand on her head before dropping her body down on the couch. "And my head hurts too."

Charlotte plays along. "In that case, you'll have to avoid all electronics that means no TV, no iPod and no Wii if you're sick. They're all suspected of contibuting to headaches so they'll be confiscated."

Harper lets out an exaggerated sigh.

Charlotte continues. "And I'll be sure to stop by your school and pick up all your classwork. You don't wanna miss out on anything, still wanna stay home sick?"

"My momma would let me stay home." Harper folds her arms against her chest, pouting.

"Your momma is soft like her daddy." Charlotte shoots.

"Hey!" Cooper protests. "I'm not soft. I told her she had to go school tomorrow."

"That's your final answer, kid." Charlotte holds Michael Nikolas. "You're goin' to school tomorrow and you're going to kill that exam of yours."

"I wish I was a baby." Harper looks at Charlotte playing with Michael Nikolas. "Babies have it so easy. All they do is sleep, eat and play all day."

Drew tells Harper. "You're in fourth grade, Squirt, you have it easy, wait until you get into high school like me then you can complain."

"Don't call me Squirt, Drew, that's your name." Harper stomps up the steps to her guest room. "Nobody understands me!"

Drew rolls his eyes. "Kids."

"Harper is a drama queen." Charlotte pulls a goldfish cracker out of the bag and hands it to Michael Nikolas. The baby stuffs it in his mouth.

"Where's Noah?" Drew grabs some goldfish crackers from Charlotte's bag.

"He's at Marley's house." Cooper answers while he waits for Michael to waddle back to him from Charlotte's arms.

"Are you kidding?" Drew scoffs. "He lives with her in Maryland. I thought he came back to visit us?"

"I was just telling your momma the same thing." Cooper catches Michael Nikolas in his arms and gives the toddler a kiss on the head.

"Marley's staying at her mother's house and Noah's stayin' here." Charlotte says. "They're stayin' apart during the night so they're spending the afternoons together."

"Did they go visit Hope yet?" Drew asks.

"They went up to see her this morning." Charlotte catches Michael Nikolas in her arms as he waddles up to her. She kisses the dark haired toddler on the nose. "You are getting so good at this, boy."

"What did they think of her?" Drew asks.

"What do you mean?" Charlotte holds Michael now.

"You know about her mouth and the blue tinged skin?"

"They already knew about her problems." Charlotte answers, a little annoyed. "Hope's not a freak, Drew."

"I didn't say she was."

"No, but you're thinking it." Cooper responds. "She's a normal baby with a heart problem and a cleft lip. You'll see once she has her surgery."

"So, her brains are all there?" Drew asks.

"Of course her brain is all there." Charlotte stands up now.

"I mean, does she have normal intelligence?"

"Yes!" Cooper answers. "She has a problem with her heart and her mouth. Her brain is fine. She wants and needs the same things as any other newborn, to be loved." Cooper and Charlotte walk into the playroom together to check on Harper and Charley.

* * *

Andie and Nicky sit on their bed. Andie has Hope in her arms while Nicky fixes the baby's oxygen tube in her nose. "That's better, Hopie." Nicky talks to the baby. "It was a little twisted."

Nicky set the crib up for Hope in the master bedroom so they could keep an eye on her. Andie looks at the clock. "It's almost time for her next feeding."

"I have a bottle ready for her." Nicky replies. "Do you want to try feeding her or do you want me to do it?"

Andie hands him the baby. "You can do the first one."

"What do you mean the first one? We've been doing this for the past two weeks at the hospital." Nicky tells her.

"Yeah but now we're home, at the hospital if there was a problem the doctors and nurses will come running, here it's just us."

"That's why they trained us in infant CPR before they sent Hope home with us." Nicky carefully sticks the bottle in Hope's mouth.

Andie watches him. "I hope we never have to use it."

"The key is not to panic, just do exactly what they showed us. I don't wanna do it either but if I have to I would."

Andie sighs. "Don't ever leave me home alone with her. I know I'll panic if her monitor goes off or she chokes on her formula. She makes me nervous because she coughs and turns blue whenever I feed her."

"That's why she has the tube in her stomach, Belle. The doctor only wants us to feed her about half an ounce by the bottle so she doesn't forget how to suck. This way we can feed her bottles after she's better."

"I know that." Andie says. "But sometimes she starts coughing when I just give her a little bit."

"Are you using the special nipple they gave us for babies with cleft palate?"

"Yes." Andie nods. "She still coughs and turns blue when I feed her. It scares the shit out of me."

"You have to hold her upright like I'm doing so it goes down by gravity. You can't cradle her in your arms when you feed her." Nicky explains.

"Oh, that's a good idea."

"It works." Nicky smiles. "See?"

Andie looks at the dark haired baby. "You're so good with her. You can't ever leave me alone with her." Andie knows she's being silly.

Nicky thinks about his road trip with the band in a few months. He decides not to tell her about it until she's less nervous around Hope. Instead he says. "I do need to work at the studio in the day and play with the band some nights at Giorgio's."

"I plan on askin' my momma or daddy to come over when you're not home."

Nicky sighs. "You'll get used to her care soon, Belle."

"I think she's already had about half an ounce." Andie watches the baby eat.

Nicky pulls the bottle out of her mouth. "Okay." He hands her the bottle. "You pour the rest of the formula down her tube."

Andie finds the yellow tube sticking out from the baby's stomach. She hooks a large syringe up to it and pours in the rest of the formula from the bottle. "There you go Hopie. Are you full now?" Andie rubs the baby's head. "She really is a sweet baby, Nicky."

"I know she is." Nicky agrees. "Look in her eyes. She's very alert."

The baby sticks her fist in her mouth and sucks on it. "Look, she wants to suck on the bottle more." Andie says.

"She can't." Nicky shakes his head. "The doctor doesn't want her to expend more calories by drinking the whole bottle. "Try this, Hope." Nicky sticks a little pink binky made especially by an occupational therapist to fit in her mouth with the cleft lip and palate. The baby starts sucking on it right away.

"Aw," Andie says. "She looks adorable sucking on her binky."

"She really is." Nicky kisses her head.

"Except I think we're the only ones who can see past her cleft palate and see the real her." Andie's eyes tear up.

"Your parents love her." Nicky reminds Andie. "They don't focus on the cleft lip."

"They're doctors Nicky." Andie scoffs. "They've seen it before in their jobs."

"What about Noah and Marley?" Nicky asks. "They came up to visit her this morning and the cleft lip didn't seem to bother them."

"Again, they're in medical school they have a tolerance for unusual medical conditions. I'm talking about everyone else, the people in the store, the kid's friends. I'm afraid to let Harper's friends come over for fear of what they'll say about Hope."

Nicky answers. "Hope shouldn't be going to the stores anyway. We can't afford for her to catch germs. I'd keep Harper's germ infested friends away from Hope too. Leave her in the bedroom if they come over."

Andie kisses the baby's hand whiles Nicky rocks her in his arms.

* * *

Dylan, Lila, Marley and Noah meet up at Jolie's house. "My mom had an emergency surgery so she won't be home for a few hours." Marley tells them.

"Cool then we can smoke some weed." Dylan pulls some out of his pocket.

"Not here, Dylan. My mother will smell it when she comes home she has the nose of a bloodhound."

"Yeah." Noah agrees. "Marley and I don't want to get back into the habit anyway."

"What about you, Lila?" Dylan asks. "You want to go outside and smoke a joint with me?"

"Uh…No. I gave it up too." She answers. She can't smoke it since she's pregnant.

"When did you guys all go and grow up on me?" Dylan sticks the joint back in his pocket. "Do you at least drink beer or is that off limits too?" Dylan scoffs.

"We drink beer." Marley tells him. "I'll get some out of the fridge. Come help me, Lila."

Lila follows Marley into the kitchen. "I can't drink. What am I gonna tell Dylan?"

Marley opens a beer bottle and dumps it down the sink. "Get me the bottle of apple juice out of the fridge."

Lila pulls out the apple juice and notices Marley rinsing the empty beer bottle out with water. "What are you doing?"

"We're going to fill this one up with apple juice for you."

"Good idea." Lila hands Marley the apple juice and watches her pour it in the bottle. "You're a genius."

"Get me a permanent marker out of the junk draw." Marley tells Lila.

Lila hand her the marker. Marley puts a small L on Lila's bottle and they carry the beer out to the living room. Marley hands one to Noah and Lila hands one to Dylan.

"Why does your bottle have and L on it?" Dylan asks Lila while he sips his beer.

"So, I know it's mine."

"What are we in kindergarten and worried about catching cooties from each other." Dylan laughs. "You should have thought about that last month before you screwed me and played tongue tag with Noah."

Lila doesn't have a good answer as to why she marked her beer; she's never done it before.

Marley tries to change the subject. "We went to see Noah's new niece today."

"How is she?" Dylan asks. "I heard she was sick."

"She has a heart problem." Noah tells him. "And a cleft lip which Marley's mom is going to fix up for her in a few months."

"Poor kid." Noah sips his beer.

"Do you like kids?" Marley asks Dylan.

"They're okay." Noah shrugs. "Why?"

"I don't know." Marley thinks quickly. "Noah and I want to have kids after we get married and thought it would be cool if our kids could grow up together like we did."

"When are you getting married?" Dylan asks.

"Not for a few years. We plan to get married when we finish med school." Marley tells Dylan.

"Well, maybe by then I'll be ready to have kids too. I'll have to see." He sips his beer.

"So, you do want kids?" Lila asks Dylan.

"Yeah." Dylan shrugs. "Doesn't everybody?"

"No." Marley shakes her head. "There are some people who choose not to have kids."

"That ain't right." Dylan takes another sip of beer. "It's the circle of life, you know, like in the Lion King?"

Lila laughs. "The Lion King was one of my favorite movies when I was little."

"Mine too." Dylan sips his beer. "I must have watched in a thousand times, it drove Sheldon nuts."

"How many kids do you want?" Lila asks.

"Two would be good, I guess, a boy and a girl."

"Like my family." Lila smiles. "Like me and my brother Lucas."

"And my family." Dylan nods. "Me and my sister Sarah."

Noah adds. "But you have two half brothers, Tyler and Cole Jr and Marley's your half sister."

Dylan laughs. "Nah. Marley's more of a friend than a sister. Didn't we discuss this last month at our towel orgy?"

Lila laughs. "I'll never forget that towel orgy, that was the best sex I ever had."

"That's because I can deliver the goods and bring it home." Dylan boasts.

"You definitely can." Lila smiles, thinking how Dylan got her pregnant that night.

"So, you guys into another round?" Dylan asks. "I figured that's why you called me to ask me to come home and meet you guys this weekend."

"I'm into it." Lila smiles at him. "How bout you?" She asks Marley.

"I'm into having sex with Noah but I think we should do it in separate rooms." Marley answers.

"Why?" Dylan asks.

"Because you're my half brother and I don't want to strip in front of you."

"You did it last time." Lila says.

"I was high as a kite last time from all the weed we smoked. I'm grounded tonight."

"And boring." Dylan teases.

"You wanna go in the bathroom and strip with me or not?" Lila asks Dylan.

"Let's go." Dylan follows Lila into the bathroom and they strip. Lila turns the shower on and they both get in. They lie down in the bathtub and soap each other up while the warm shower water pours over them. After they're both soaped up Dylan slides inside Lila and screws her. She moans and screams until they finish." Afterward they dress and rejoin Marley and Noah in the living room.

"You two didn't even screw." Dylan accuses them.

Noah laughs "We live together. We screw every night at home."

"Still." Dylan says. "Why wouldn't you want to screw here? Shake it up a little. Screwing in new places makes it different."

"Do you really have to know, Dylan?" Marley asks, sort of annoyed. "I have my period, that's why Noah and I couldn't screw along side you and Lila tonight. Are you satisfied? Guys get grossed out by period blood."

"I'm not that shallow." Dylan answers back, annoyed. "And for your information you can still have sex with your period. I do it at home with my girlfriend all the time."

"Gross." Noah screws up his nose.

"Noah's the one who's shallow and thinks period blood is gross." Dylan accuses. "Not me."

"Sorry." Marley retorts. "I didn't know you were so sensitive."

"I guess you don't know me very well." Dylan scoffs.

Lila's stunned about what Dylan said a few moments ago. "You have a girlfriend?" Lila asks.

"Yeah. I met her at a party a couple of months ago." Dylan answers.

"But you just fucked me and you did it the day of Chase's wedding too." Lila waits for his response.

"I'm dating her. I'm not dead." Dylan tells Lila. "Besides, she's in Texas, she'll never now." Dylan grabs a beer and takes a sip. "What the fuck is this shit?" He calls out. "It tastes like apple juice." He looks at the label and notices the L in marker for Lila. "Why are you drinking apple juice in a beer bottle? Are you practicing to be on Sesame Street?" Dylan teases Lila.

Lila quickly rises to her feet. "I'm going home now." She grabs her purse and practically runs out the door with tears in her eyes.

"Is she crying?" Dylan asks. "What's her problem?"

"You're an ass, Dylan." Noah tells him. "You just fucked her in the bathroom and then announce you have a girlfriend back in Texas."

"Yeah, so? It's not like Lila and I are in a relationship. This was all just for fun." Dylan picks up the wrong bottle and sips it again. "And why's she drinking apple juice?"

"She's pregnant." Marley tells Dylan. "We poured the beer out and filled it with apple juice."

"She's pregnant?" Dylan appears shocked. "I couldn't tell and I just saw her butt naked."

"She's still early." Noah tells him. "She got pregnant the day of Chase's wedding."

"Wait a minute." Dylan thinks. "At our towel orgy?"

"Bingo, Einstein!"

"Are you saying I knocked her up?" Dylan asks.

"Yes, why do you think we were asking if you liked kids?" Marley points out.

"Shit." Dylan rubs his hand over his head.

"We're the only ones she told so don't say anything to her. She doesn't want to tell anyone yet since she's early. Michelle had an early miscarriage." Marley explains.

"But what about telling me if I'm the baby daddy? She should tell me."

"She was planning to until you said you had a girlfriend and you started acting like an asshole." Noah sips his beer.

"What should I do? Should I call her?" Dylan asks.

"Call her and apologize for being an ass tonight but don't tell her we told you she's pregnant. If you want you could say you figured it out cuz why else would she be drinking apple juice in a beer bottle."

"Good idea, dude." Dylan pulls out his phone and walks out the door.


	23. Chapter 23

_**CHAPTER 23**_

* * *

Cooper's flipping pancakes while Charlotte pours the orange juice. Harper, Charley and Michael Nikolas are staying with their grandparents while their momma and poppa adjust to having the new baby home.

"Who wants the last pancake?" Cooper calls out.

"Me." Drew raises his hand.

"That's not fair." Harper protests. "Drew already had three and I only had two."

"Drew's bigger than you." Charlotte tells Harper.

"Not that much bigger. I'm almost as tall as him." Harper answers Charlotte back.

"I want more!" Charley calls out.

"Might as well make another batch, Coop. We got a bunch of hungry lions in our kitchen this mornin'."

"That's because they're chocolate chip pancakes." Harper tells him. "Chocolate chip pancakes are the best."

"Glad you like em." Cooper mixes more eggs and flour in the bowl before adding chocolate chips.

"Would you look at that. Michael Nikolas even finished his." Charlotte comments before her phone rings. "Hello?" She answers.

Cooper listens to her talk while he flips the pancakes.

"Calm down, Andie. What happened?"

Charlotte then tells her. "She's going to be blue if she's coughin' and cryin'. Hold her upright. What's her oxygen number on the monitor?"

"Okay, Sweet Pea. I'm on my way over. Calm down." Charlotte says into the phone.

"What's going on?" Cooper asks.

"Nicky went to work. Andie's feeding the baby alone. The baby started gaggin' and turnin' blue, the monitors are going off. I'm gonna to go over there to help her."

"Call me when you get there." Cooper puts the new pancakes on the table for the kids. "Eat fast, it's just me now. I have to drop you off at the high school," he tells Drew. "Then I have to drop Harper off at the elementary school and then drop Charley off at the preschool and you, Michael, have to tag along with me." Cooper wipes the toddlers face.

"I wish Nan didn't have to leave." Harper pouts. "I like when she drives me to school."

"The baby's having a hard time." Drew says.

Cooper suggests. "I think it's more just Andie flipping out. We didn't get any phone calls when Nicky was home. Your sister tends to panic."

"I heard momma say the monitors were going off." Drew tells Cooper.

"That's going to happen when the baby coughs and cries. She's not getting enough oxygen when she does that. She has oxygen hooked up to her nose, as soon as she catches her breath her oxygen levels will recover."

"Sounds scary to me." Drew finishes his pancakes.

"I told you that baby wasn't normal." Harper insists. "Poppa showed me a picture of it on his phone, it's freaky looking."

"That's not nice, Harper." Cooper scolds. "I don't want to hear you talk like that about your baby sister again."

"I don't want a sister like her." Harper tells him. "I'd rather have another brother than her."

"Harper go get your backpack, it's time for school." Cooper's voice is annoyed.

"You have to admit, dad, the baby looks like something out of a horror movie." Drew grabs his own back pack.

"I expect it out of Harper because she's nine but I don't expect it out of you." Cooper tells Drew. "You're fifteen. You should know better than to say something like that. How would you like it if someone knocked all your teeth out and then called you a freak?"

"Happens to me at school everyday, dad, because I'm different."

"How are you different?"

"I'm in ninth grade but I'm the same size as the sixth graders." Drew tells him. "I catch hell for it everyday."

"Then _you_ should be more understanding for your new niece." Cooper picks up Michael out of the high chair, wiping his hands and face with a cloth. "Alright, come on everybody, Grandpa's taxi service awaits you."

* * *

Charlotte uses her key to get in the front door. She hurries upstairs to the master bedroom of her daughter's house. Andie's in tears, cradling the baby. Charlotte takes the baby from Andie to observe her. "She looks okay to me, Sweet pea."

"She is now but you should have been here a few minutes ago." Andie's voice is anxious. "I thought I was going to have to do that infant CPR on her."

"Why?" Charlotte asks, cradling the baby. "What happened?"

"I was feeding her the bottle and she started choking on the formula. She was coughing a lot and it was coming out of her nose and mouth through that thing in her lip." Andie goes on. "And she was really really blue."

Charlotte sits down on the bed with the baby. "Andie, we told you she's going to get blue when she cries and coughs. It's because of her heart condition. As soon as she stops coughin' and cryin' it'll stop."

"It lasted for a long time. She was gagging on the formula and then she started crying."

Charlotte looks at the baby. "She's fine now. Her oxygen saturation level is good."

"They dropped down to the sixties when she was gagging." Andie tells her momma, anxiously.

"That's gonna happen, you better get used to it."

"Momma?"

"I'm just sayin' she has these conditions and until they're fixed with surgery this kind of thing is gonna happen with Hope. You can't panic and cry, just make sure she has on her oxygen mask and if she's gaggin' clean the formula away from her mouth." Charlotte advises.

"Maybe I'll just feed her through the tube in her stomach. This stuff only happens when I feed her by mouth."

"You have to give her some by mouth first so she knows what to do with it after the surgery."

The baby starts to cry a little.

"She's probably still hungry. I stopped feeding her when she was gagging." Andie tells Charlotte.

"Give me the bottle, I'll feed her." Charlotte reaches for the bottle.

Andie watches the baby suck slowly on the bottle while Charlotte holds her upright.

"You need to keep pullin' it out of her mouth every few sucks, wait for her to swallow and then put it back in." Charlotte shows Andie. After she's finished feeding the baby, Charlotte pours the rest down the tube in the baby's stomach.

"You're not going to leave yet? Are you momma?"

Charlotte looks at her watch. "Your dad should be taking all the kids to school by now. I'll ask him to bring Michael Nikolas by. I'm sure he would love to see his momma."

"I want to see him too." Andie sniffles.

Charlotte rocks the baby in her arms. The baby looks up into Charlotte's eyes. "She really is the sweetest little thing."

"I know, momma, she's such a good baby. I feel so bad for her. She has all these problems."

"Problems that can be fixed." Charlotte reassures. "After her surgery, she'll be like any other baby."

"But she needs another operation on her heart when she's about four and maybe another when she's ten. The doctor's have to fix her heart as she grows."

"I know that but this first surgery is the biggest one, it'll help her the most. She'll be fine." Charlotte smiles at the small baby. "And you have to stop scarin' your momma. Ya' hear me?"

* * *

Dylan knocks on the door at Violet and Pete's house. Lila answers, she's surprised to see Dylan standing there. "I thought you flew back to Texas yesterday."

Dylan walks in the house. "I know you thought that. You wouldn't have answered the door if you thought it was me since you haven't answered my calls or texts since the other night."

"You were acting like a jerk. I didn't want to talk to you."

Dylan looks around a little before plopping down on the couch. "So, why are you still home? How come you didn't fly back to North Carolina yet?"

Lila sits next to Dylan on the couch. "I'm dropping out of Duke's medical school."

"Why?"

Lila shrugs and tells him. "It was my parent's dream for me to become a doctor, not mine. My parents are both doctors and my brother's a doctor so I felt like the black sheep of the family if I didn't become one but I'm not happy, it's not me."

"What do you want to do?" Dylan asks.

"I like photography but I don't know if I'm good enough to make a living at it."

"Take a few classes so you become good enough to make a living at it." Dylan advises.

"I will but I'll do it here in LA."

"So, you're not going back to Carolina?"

"I have to go back to pack up my stuff and tie up loose ends but I've decided to move back home."

"I see." Dylan gives a nod." So, your family can help you with the baby?"

Lila gasps. "Marley told you? I can't believe it." Lila goes on. "I trusted her."

"Marley didn't tell me." Dylan lies. "I'm not stupid, Lila. Why else would you have poured out your beer and refilled the bottle with apple juice?"

"I'm a recovering alcoholic?" Lila tries to make a joke.

"And then on top of it you turned down the weed. It's not often that Lila Wilder turns down free weed." Dylan smiles at her now.

Lila gives him a bashful smile. "Caught red-handed. You're right, I'm pregnant."

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"I'm only about seven weeks. It's very early. Chase's wife had a miscarriage so I thought I should wait before telling anyone. I only told Marley because she's my best friend and I needed to tell someone."

"Are you okay with being pregnant?" Dylan asks.

"Yeah. I'm twenty-four years old. I can handle having a baby in my life."

"So, is it definitely mine?"

"I haven't slept with anyone but you in almost a year, so yeah." Lila raises her eyebrows.

"You don't have a boyfriend?"

"Nope." Lila shakes her head. "I broke up with Corey a year ago and I wasn't ready to start dating again. Tell me about your girlfriend."

"Her name is Cara, we've only been dating a few months, it's not serious."

"Do you want it to be?"

"I don't know." Dylan shrugs. "I'm not ready to settle down yet so I haven't thought about anything long term. Cara and I have a good time together. It's only been a few months so we haven't discussed any future plans yet, but I like her if that's what you're asking."

"How would she feel if she knew you knocked me up?"

Dylan takes a deep breath and lets it out. "She wouldn't be happy about it, that's for sure. She'd probably break up with me."

"And would you be okay with that?" Lila asks.

"I'd have to be, like I said, I like her a lot but we've only been dating a few months so...-"

"Why'd you screw me if you had a girlfriend?"

Dylan responds. "I always sort of wanted to have sex with you since we were in high school."

"Do you think things would have turned out different if we had sex in high school?" Lila asks.

"Well, I wouldn't have been so horny to jump you if we already did it, so yeah. It's like I've been waiting to do this for ten years."

Lila laughs. "Me too. I always wanted to have sex with you but we never did in high school for whatever reason and then we went to separate colleges so it never happened."

"Until now." Dylan finishes.

"So, what do _you_ want me to do?" Lila asks "About the baby?"

"What do you want to do?"

"I want to keep it, I'm twenty-four. I can handle a baby in my life. I've always loved babies."

"Okay." Dylan nods. "I'm okay with that."

"Do you want to be part of its life?" Lila asks. "Because if you don't I'll understand, this wasn't planned."

"It's my kid, I want to be involved." Dylan nods. "I'm not sure how involved I can be living in Texas but we'll figure it out. I want the baby to know I'm its' father."

"Wow, I'm impressed." Lila smiles. "I thought you would be mad and want nothing to do with me or the baby."

"My dad got my mom pregnant when he was engaged to Jolie but he didn't turn his back on us. He's been just as much a father to me as he's been to Cole Jr, Marley and Tyler. He's always been in my life so how could I turn my back on you and this baby."

"That's right." Lila remembers.

"My dad didn't turn his back on my mom or me. Our baby is just like me. I'm going to be a good father to it like my father's been to me."

Lila has tears in her eyes. "Thank you, Dylan. You don't know what a relief it is to hear you say that." Tears start leaking from her eyes.

"Come on...I'll take you out for some lunch." Dylan grabs her hand and they walk out the door.


	24. Chapter 24

_**CHAPTER 24**_

* * *

It's a typical Thursday morning, Drew's sitting in his homeroom class waiting for the bell to ring. A husky girl with long blonde hair and green eyes approaches his desk. "G'Day Mate, How ya going? I'm Ruby Walker." The girl extends her hand to shake.

Drew returns the hand shake. The first thing he notices besides her emerald green eyes is that she's about an inch shorter than he is. He likes her instantly.

Drew informs. "Miss Crump told me about you. You're my buddy for the week."

"Yes." She smiles. "This is my first day of school here. I moved here from Oz last week."

"Oz? Miss Crump said you were from Australia?" Drew furrows his brow.

"Yes, I'm an Ozzie."

"Oh?"

"It's actually Aussie but it's pronounced Ozzie. You say it like a z not an s...-"

Drew interrupts. "I get it. It's short for Australia but instead of Aus you say Oz."

"That's right." Ruby puts her books down at the desk next to him. "I hope you don't mind me tagging around with you for the week. I can be a gas bag."

Drew grimaces. "Gas bag?"

"Yes." She notices the look on his face. She clarifies, "a chatter box or someone who talks too much."

"Oooh. That's a relief." Drew responds.

"What did you think it meant?"

"Someone who farts and expels smelly gas."

Ruby laughs. "Oh no, I wouldn't do that."

"Why did you move here from Australia or Oz?"

"My dad moved here years ago and I decided to give it a go."

"What about your mother?"

"My mum's still in Oz. My oldies split up when I was an ankle biter, before my dad decided to move to the States."

"Your mom doesn't mind you moving so far away?"

Ruby explains. "I've lived with my mum my whole life. I wanted to give living with my dad a try. What can she say?"

Drew shrugs. "She can say no."

"I'm fifteen, it's my choice. I would be a beast back home if she didn't let me come live with my dad."

"Is this your first time here?"

"No. My dad moved to the States when I was five but he lived in New York and Florida. I spent my school holidays there to visit him. This is my first time on the west coast."

"Welcome to LA." The bell rings and they walk to their first class together.

* * *

Marley and Noah are in the library at the med school. Marley feels her phone vibrate in her pocket. "It's Lila." She tells Noah. I'm going to take the call outside." Marley leaves the library. "Hey Lila, how are you?"

"Great." Lila answers in a chipper mood.

"That's good to hear. You were bummed the last time I saw you."

"I'm still pregnant so I'm hopeful that it's gonna stick and Dylan came by my house last Monday to talk to me."

"I thought he had a flight back to Texas last Sunday?"

"He did but he put it off and he also missed his classes on Monday so he could stay and talk to me."

"Really?" Marley's a little surprised.

Lila talks in a happy, excited voice. "He was really nice. He apologized for being such an ass Friday night to me and he took me out to lunch."

"Great. What did you talk about?"

"He knows I'm pregnant. He wants to be a father to the baby like his father did for him even though he was married to your mom."

Marley sighs. "Funny how history repeats itself. What about his girlfriend?"

"He says he likes her a lot but it's not too serious. They've only been dating a few months and haven't discussed any future plans."

"So, he's still dating her?" Marley asks.

"So far but he doesn't know how she'll react to the news that he cheated on her and got me pregnant."

"Hmm….I don't know. My mom still married my dad even though he cheated on her and got Amelia pregnant while they were engaged."

"The apple doesn't fall far from the tree." Lila sighs. "Dylan is a lot like your father."

"Watch out cuz my dad is a ladies man, it drove my mother bezerk. That's why they're divorced now." Marley warns Lila.

"I don't expect Dylan to marry me or anything. I just want him to be around for the baby. The baby deserves to know it's father."

* * *

Tess sits in the mommy and me class with Brayden rolling on the mat in front of her. "Good job, Brayden." Tess smiles and claps for his new stunt.

The mother sitting next to her smiles. "He's adorable."

"Thank you, he just learned how to roll."

The other mother tells Tess. "He must look like his father with that dark hair."

Tess nods. "He looks exactly like his father, just in a miniature form."

The mother smiles. "I know how you feel; we do all the work giving birth to them while the fathers get all the bragging rights."

Tess pulls Brayden up into a sitting position. "He's working on sitting up all by himself. He can stay up for a few seconds before falling over."

"Wow. That's good, Zoe, my daughter didn't learn to sit up until she was six months old."

Tess looks over at the woman's baby. "Zoe is adorable too."

The woman answers. "She's another one who looks just like her father but you'll see that next week at the daddy and me class. Is Brayden's dad coming?"

"No, he lives in Los Angeles."

"Why is Brayden's dad so far away?"

Tess picks Brayden up onto her lap. "He's a doctor. He's doing his pediatric residency there."

"Oh, I see, well, why don't you move there to be near him?"

"He's married to another woman now and doesn't want to be a part of Brayden's life." Tess tells the woman.

"Oh?" The woman looks down at Brayden who's sucking on his thumb. "Brayden's father will get what's coming to him for leaving his baby boy fatherless. I'm a true believer in Karma."

* * *

Harper and Drew join Charlotte and Cooper at the dinner table. Charley and Michael Nikolas wait for their food. Cooper looks around his full table. He asks Charlotte, "not that I don't enjoy the company but when are they going home?"

Charlotte spoons some mashed potatoes on each child's plate. "Andie's overwhelmed with Hope, she can't handle the rest of the kids home yet."

"It's been over a month." Cooper complains. "When is she going to be ready?"

"She's getting better." Charlotte pours a glass of milk.

"Maybe we should hire her nurse to help out with Hope?"

"Cooper?"

"I'm serious, Chief, these kids need to go home and have their own rooms back, sleep in their own beds."

Harper chimes in. "I like it here. I don't want to go home if that freaky baby's there."

"Harper Ava Poulos, if I hear you call your sister freaky again you're gettin' a bar of soap in your mouth." Charlotte scolds.

"Sorry, Nan."

Cooper looks over at Drew. "Slow down, you're going to give yourself agita."

"This isn't a race" Charlotte tells Drew. "Slow down."

"I'm meeting someone at the park after dinner." Drew shovels down his food.

"Who?" Charlotte asks.

"Her name is Ruby, she's new to LA. I told her I would show her around on our bikes."

"Is she that fat girl I saw you talking to at your bus stop?" Harper asks.

"Harper!" Charlotte glares.

"But, Nan, she's very, very, very fat."

"It doesn't matter." Charlotte tells her. "You don't judge a book by its cover."

"Your Nan's right." Cooper holds his fork up as he talks. "You'll miss out on the best friendships if you judge people by their looks." Cooper lectures.

Charlotte agrees. "Ya' shouldn't judge, some people may not have physical beauty but have sweet hearts. You need to give them a chance."

"You're talking about that baby aren't you?" Harper accuses. "Because I called her a freak because of her ugly mouth."

"Harper," Cooper says, calmly. "When you look at Hope all you see is her mouth but she's really just like any other baby."

Charlotte joins in. "Hope can't help what her mouth looks like. She was born that way, it's not her fault and you shouldn't hold it against her. She didn't ask to have a cleft lip."

"Then why does she?" Harper asks. "Whose fault is it she was born that way?"

"Your parents." Drew answers.

"Why is it their fault?" Harper asks Drew. "What did they do to make her mouth broken in half?"

Charlotte glares at Drew now. "It's not their fault, nobody knows why this stuff happens."

Drew rolls his eyes.

Cooper corrects Drew. "Andie and Nicky had three healthy children before Hope was born, we don't know why Hope has the defects she has, but we're thankful that they're all able to be corrected with surgery."

Drew looks at his watch. "I gotta go meet Ruby." He rises to his feet.

"I wanna come with you." Harper jumps out of her seat.

"Be home before dark." Cooper tells them.

"I want you both home when the street lights come on." Charlotte instructs.

Harper and Drew run out the door and jump on their bicycles. As they pedal to the park Harper asks Drew. "Why do you think it's my parent's fault that Hope is defective?"

"I can't tell you." Drew pedals along. "I'll get in trouble."

"Please tell me." Harper pleads.

"It's not my job to tell you. Your parents will tell you when they think you're old enough to understand."

"When will that be?"

"I don't know. You have to ask your momma." Drew spots Ruby on her bike. "Hey Ruby!" He calls out.

"How ya goin'?" She pedals towards him. "Who's the Sheila?"

Harper corrects Ruby. "My name's not Sheila, it's Harper."

"She's my niece." Drew tells Ruby.

"G'day." Ruby tells Harper. "I'm Ruby Walker."

"You talk weird." Harper snarls her nose.

"She's from OZ." Drew tells Harper.

"You mean like Dorothy and Toto? That's not a real place."

"I'm from Australia." Ruby smiles at Harper. "We call it OZ."

"You ready to see the local sights?" Drew asks.

"I'm keen to see the park you told me about at school today." Ruby follows Drew and Harper on their bikes to the park.

"Look, Drew!" Harper points. "There's Sarah and her boyfriend."

Just as Drew, Harper and Ruby ride by they hear Sarah's boyfriend, Kyle, laugh and say. "Well, look at that, Sarah, it's a hippo and a midget man riding bikes. The circus must be in town."

"Stop it." Sarah warns Kyle. "That's mean."

Drew's embarrassed for both himself and Ruby. He shocks everyone when he jumps off his bike and throws it to the ground. He stalks up to Kyle. "Do you want to say that to my face?"

"What are you going to do to me midget man?" Kyle teases.

Drew starts to raise his fist but Sarah jumps between them. "Stop it, both of you."

Harper runs over to them. She yells at Kyle. "If you touch Drew, I'll call the cops on you and you'll go to jail forever."

Kyle taunts Drew. "You need your little girlfriend to protect you."

"I'm not his girlfriend." Harper puts her hands on her hips. "I'm his niece."

"Oh right, fatty over there must be his girlfriend." Kyle teases.

"Stop it, Kyle." Sarah pulls him by the arm. "Let's go."

"You're a mean bully jerk!" Harper yells at Kyle as Sarah pulls him away.

"Nick off!" Ruby yells out at him before she walks over to Drew with his bike. "Here's your push bike. It's a tad bit scraped up from when you threw it to the ground."

"Sorry about that." Drew tells Ruby. "That dude gets on my nerves."

"I know his type, he acts all tough but he's piss weak." Ruby tells him.

"Sorry, you had to hear that." Drew gets back on his bike.

"No worries." Ruby climbs back on her bike. "Show me the sights."

Drew, Harper and Ruby ride the trail through the park. "Your friend Ruby is really nice." Harper tells Drew.

"See?" Drew responds. "Nan and grandpa were right, maybe you should listen to them and give Hope a chance."


	25. Chapter 25

_**CHAPTER 25**_

* * *

_**One month later:**_

Chase waits patiently in bed, watching television, for Michelle to come out of the bathroom. He looks at the clock, she's taking longer than he expected. He's not sure if that's a good or a bad thing. Finally, the bathroom door opens. Michelle's frowning. "Negative," she says, the disappointment emanating from her voice. "I did the test three times just to make sure, all three were negative."

"C'mere." Chase holds his arms out for her.

She doesn't waste any time rushing into his open arms. She leans her head on his shoulder. "I was so sure."

"It's okay." He rubs her back. "It'll happen next month."

"But, I'm late, I haven't had a period since the miscarriage over six weeks ago."

"Your hormones and body need time to recover." Chase comforts her.

"I was so sure, that's why I did the test three times." Michelle cries. "I feel like I'm being punished for something."

"Why would you think that?"

Michelle sniffles back her tears. "We were both so happy when we found out I was pregnant then I had a miscarriage a week later and now this tease making me think I was pregnant again."

Chase sighs. "You need to relax, _we_ need to relax and not think about, we should have fun trying and when it happens, it happens, okay?"

"But what if it never happens? This is why we got married, to start a family."

"We haven't been trying long enough to worry about that."

"But what if it turns out we can't have a baby. Would you leave me?"

"No, of course not. We we would adopt. My dad was adopted. He turned out okay." Chase thinks. "Well, if you ask my momma she may not agree…-"

Michelle laughs now.

Chase smiles. "Ah, I got ya to laugh. And don't worry we haven't been trying that long, it'll happen."

Michelle hugs Chase before they relax watching television in bed.

* * *

Nicky walks in the door after a long day at the studio. Andie greets him. "I've got good news."

"Good, I could use some." Nicky gives Andie a peck on the lips.

"I talked to momma, we decided that the kids can come back here to live, starting tomorrow."

"That's great." Nicky heads upstairs to the bedroom to see the baby.

Andie follows him. "I took Hope to the cardiologist by myself today. I managed fine with her oxygen and monitor. I wasn't even nervous, well, maybe just a little nervous."

"Great." Nicky picks Hope up and plants a kiss on her nose. "What did the cardiologist say?"

"He said she's doing good. She's gained over four pounds since she was born. She's eight pounds now. That's the size of a healthy newborn."

"She's looking good." Nicky kisses the dark haired baby on the top of her head.

"I feel more comfortable now that she doesn't seem so fragile. I've gotten the hang of how to feed her so she doesn't gag and if she does I just turn up her oxygen and wait for the spell to pass."

Nicky puts the back baby down in her crib. "Did the cardiologist say when he was going to do her surgery?"

"He said he wants to schedule it for two months from today. She'll be even bigger and stronger by then and the cleft lip doesn't bother me anymore. I don't even notice it."

"Are they still planning to do both surgeries at the same time?" Nicky asks.

"Yeah, the cardiologist and Jolie have to coordinate their schedules."

Nicky pulls his jacket and shirt off. He changes into a t-shirt. "I need to talk to you about something that's going to make you really mad." Nicky sits down on the bed.

"What?" Andie sits next to him.

"My band is going on the road in two months. I tried to postpone it but the tickets are sold out."

Andie furrows her brow. "If the tickets are already sold out you must have known about this before today?"

"I did. I've known about it since you were pregnant but I didn't want to give you something else to stress about. I was waiting for the right time and this is as good as any."

"Do _you_ have to go with the band?"

Nicky shrugs. "I'm the lead singer, fans are paying to see me. It'll be real bad for our band if I back out."

"People have to understand you have a sick baby." Andie pleads.

"To an extent, Belle, but this is our first tour on our own. This is the first time we're not opening for another band. Another band is opening for us. This is big, Belle. This is what I've been dreaming about since I was a little kid."

Andie sighs. "I know."

Nicky cups Andie's chin in his hand. "I have a plan."

"What?"

"The concert dates are scheduled from Thursday nights until Sunday afternoons. I have off Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday nights. We need to get the surgery scheduled for a Monday or Tuesday. " Nicky explains. "I'll fly home Sunday after the concert, I'll spend all day Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday with you and fly back Thursday morning. I'll do it every week as long as you need me too."

"Sounds expensive, flying back and forth every week."

"If my band makes it big from these concerts and our album sells, it'll all be worth it. We'll be able to buy our own private jet one day."

Andie chuckles. "I married a dreamer."

Nicky shakes his head. "I'm a doer, not a dreamer. I'm making my dreams come true."

Andie nods her head.

Nicky takes her hand in his. "I've got a beautiful wife, four amazing kids and now my band is finally taking off."

Andie hugs him with tears in her eyes.

"Aren't you mad?" Nicky asks. "I was expecting us to have a big fight about this."

"I'm not going to fight with you. I'm actually really happy for you."

"You're not mad?" Nicky's relieved.

"How can I be mad? You've been working hard for this most of your life but I am sad because I'll miss you."

"I'll be home three full days each week."

Andie nods. "I know."

"And you have your parents who are both doctors to help you out."

"Yeah," Andie nods. "I'm making them feel really needed. I keep them busy and the kids keep them young. I think they'll live longer cuz of me."

Nicky chuckles. "They should live to be over one-hundred if your theory is right."

"Good thing I'm the only one to give them grandchildren so far. One day my brothers will have kids and we'll have to share my parents with them."

Nicky jokes. "Hopefully, by then Harper will be old enough to babysit."

* * *

Charlotte calls Harper and Charley to sit down on the couch with her and Cooper before bed. "What's up, Nan?" Nine year old Harper asks.

"Your momma is ready for y'all to come back home tomorrow. She misses you." Charlotte pats Harper's knee.

"What about _that_ baby?" Harper asks.

"_That_ baby is your sister and her name is Hope." Charlotte looks Harper in the eyes.

"Did they fix her mouth yet?" Harper asks.

"Not yet." Charlotte answers. "She needs to get a little bit bigger first."

"I don't want to go home until after her mouth is fixed. I'm scared of it."

"Harper?" Cooper squeezes his granddaughter's knee. "She's a baby. She can't hurt you. She can't even walk."

"She still scares me because of her mouth and she's blue. Please let me stay here, grandpa, please." Harper pleads with Cooper.

"You've been staying here for over two months already. Your parents miss you."

"Poppa comes here to visit me and momma visits us so I still get to see them."

"You need to live in your own house and sleep in your own bed." Charlotte tells her.

"Can I please just stay here with you, Nan, please?" Harper begs. "Charley and Michael Nikolas can go back home but I want to stay here. Please Nan, please Grandpa? I'm afraid of that baby."

Charlotte sighs, looking at Cooper.

Cooper tells Harper. "It's not our decision, honey. You'll have to ask your momma."

"Okay, I'll call her tomorrow." Harper agrees.

"How about you, Charley?" Charlotte asks her red headed four-year old grandson. "Do you want to go home to live with your momma and poppa?"

"Yes, I miss my room and my bed and the stars on the ceiling and the planets painted on my walls and…-"

"Okay." Cooper stops Charley from talking. "We get the idea, you want to go home."

Charlotte and Cooper lead the kids upstairs for storytime.

* * *

_**Don't forget to REVIEW! **_

_**A/N- So, normally, I answer all my reviews in a timely fashion. I noticed that some of you recently disabled your messages while others whose messages were disabled are now working. I just wanted to let you know to check and see. If you disabled them because you don't want spoilers, etc-just let me know. I have had some people request no spoilers while others beg for them. I try not to give spoilers unless asked and there are some things that I won't give away such as who dies. Thank you all for reading/reviewing =)**_


	26. Chapter 26

_**CHAPTER 26**_

* * *

Charlotte walks out of the board room after signing a contract to oversee hospital operations as Chief of Staff until they can find a new replacement. She's surprised to run into Tess's momma, Cindy Powers, in a hallway of the hospital. She notices Cyndi's wearing a wig. Charlotte approaches her. "Hi Cyndi, how are you?"

"I've been better." The frail looking woman responds.

"Anything I can help you with?" Charlotte asks.

"I don't think so." Cyndi's voice is cold and distant. "I have breast cancer."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"The chemo is hell."

"I understand." Charlotte nods. "But it's needed to beat the cancer."

"I can't wait until it's over." Cyndi turns to walk away.

"How's Tess?" Charlotte asks before Cyndi has a chance to walk away.

"Tess is fine."

"Where's she doin' her residency?" Charlotte asks.

"She's taking a break from her residency, she'll start it up again next semester." Cyndi tells her.

This surprises Charlotte, Chase complained she was a workaholic. "Why's she taking a break?" Charlotte asks.

"You really need to be having this conversation with my daughter, not me." Cyndi's voice is cold again.

"How are your grandchildren?" Charlotte asks about Tess's older brother's two kids. "Those boys must be growing like weeds."

"I have three grandsons now." Cyndi tells Charlotte. "They're what keeps me fighting this cancer. I want them to have a grandmother."

"Of course." Charlotte nods.

"Have a good day." Cyndi turns to walk away.

"Say hello to Tess for me." Charlotte calls after Cyndi. Cyndi doesn't respond. Charlotte thinks it's petty for Cyndi to be cold to her because of what happened with Tess and Chase but she lets it go.

* * *

Nicky picks Harper up from school. "Hey, poppa!" Harper gives Nicky a kiss on the cheek after she hops in the car. "Why are you picking me up and not grandpa?"

"Because it's poppa and Harper day."

"Yay!" Harper yells. "But what about work?"

"I took off early so I could spend time with my favorite girl."

"Yay. I'm still your favorite girl because I have a pretty mouth and not a broken mouth."

Nicky realizes what he said. He's used to calling Harper his favorite girl, he's going to have to change that. "I hear you don't want to come home yet, rabbit."

"Not until that baby gets its mouth fixed. It freaks me out."

"Hope's just a baby, Harper, you should get to know her. She's really sweet."

"No, thanks." Harper looks out the window. "So, can I stay with Nan and grandpa for now?"

"You can but your momma and I miss you. You're our rabbit." Nicky tweaks her little nose.

"I miss you too, poppa. I don't want to go to dance class today." Harper tells him.

"What do you want to do?"

"I want you to teach me to dance like you do, that's fun dancing. I don't like ballet."

"You want to go to the studio and dance to my music?" Nicky asks, surprised.

"Yeah. I wanna be a big rock star like you."

"I'm not a big rock star yet, rabbit, but I will be soon."

* * *

Michelle's at work. She walks in the kitchen where Addison, Violet and Cooper are sitting. Violet and Pete are in town visiting.

"So, are you happy to be back in LA?" Addison asks.

"As much as Pete and I love our house in Maine, it looks like we're going to be spending more time in LA." Violet responds.

"Why's that?" Addison sips her coffee.

"Lila's pregnant, she's going to be a single mom, she'll need our help."

"Congratulations." Addison's surrprised. "So, now Rosie isn't going to be your only grandchild."

"Congrats!" Cooper stands up to give her a hug. "Charlotte and I have known for over a month, Noah told us."

"It was a surprise to us." Violet hugs Cooper back. "She apparently got pregnant the day of Chase's wedding."

Michelle's sitting in the kitchen listening, her eyes pop a little. That's about the time she got pregnant. Why did Lila's pregnancy stick if she's single and clearly wasn't trying. It's not fair. Michelle can't help the tears. She briskly walks out of the kitchen and into Chase's office. "Lila's pregnant. She got pregnant on our wedding day."

"By who?" Chase screws up his face.

"Who cares?" Michelle cries. "It's not fair that I lost our baby and she's still pregnant. It's not fair."

Chase gets up to hug her. 'You can't think about it like that." Chase pats Michelle on the back. "You'll be pregnant again soon."

"I don't know." Michelle cries on his shoulder. "I feel like I'm being punished."

Chase pushes her hair behind her ears and wipes her tears away. "Why do you keep saying that? These things happen sometimes. A lot of women have miscarriages and go on to get pregnant again. You're not being punished."

Michelle hugs Chase again. She thinks about Tess and her baby, she wonders if she told Chase about Tess being pregnant it would lift the punishment. She wants a baby with Chase so bad but she's afraid if she tells him, he'll leave her. She starts to cry again. He rubs her back. "It'll be okay." Chase tells her. "We'll have a baby soon."

* * *

Drew knocks on the door of Ruby's house.

"G'day Mate." The heavy set girl with the long blonde hair lets him in. He walks into her living room. He's just about to say something when her phone rings. "Hold on a tick," she tells him. Drew looks around her living room while she's on the phone. It definitely looks like a bachelor pad. Her father has been accustomed to living alone for years.

"That was my dad, He won't be home tonight." Ruby tells Drew. "He's got something to do after work."

"He won't be home tonight?" Drew asks. "He's leaving you alone all night?"

"He stays at his lady friend's house sometimes. He doesn't want to bring her here because of me."

"Why?" Drew asks.

"I s'pose they think I'll be in their way."

"Oh." Drew shrugs and sits on the couch. "What do you want to do?"

"We can take out our push bikes and get some take away food or we could watch the idiot box. That's what I normally do."

"Oh," Drew nods. "You can come to my house to eat dinner some time, it beats eating take out every night."

"I'd like that." Ruby smiles. "You're very kind."

They head out to the garage to get the bikes and some fast food. Drew's happy to have found his new friend Ruby.


	27. Chapter 27

_**CHAPTER 27**_

* * *

Chase waits for Michelle in the dimly lit bedroom. He's wearing her favorite cologne. He lit a few scented candles to promote a baby making mood. He's wearing her favorite black silk boxers.

"Wow!' Michelle walks in the room, looking around at the candles. "Sexy. What's the occasion?"

"Hopefully, the conception of our firstborn."

"Let me change into something appropriate for the occasion." Michelle pulls a red and black lace negligee out of her dresser and disappears into the bathroom. She leaves the door open so they can talk while she gets herself ready. "Sorry I was late," she tells him as she slips out of her clothes and into the negligee.

He answers her through the open door. "I was getting restless waiting. What was the hold up?"

"I ran into Benn at the store. He can talk anyone's ear off and he had mine tonight."

"Benn Golder?" Chase's ears perk up. "Your ex?"

"The one and only." Michelle primps herself while looking in the mirror.

"I don't like him." Chase scowls.

"You don't know him. Benn's a really great guy." Michelle brushes her hair.

"I don't see it." Chase shakes his head.

"You don't wanna see it." Michelle sprays herself with Chase's favorite perfume. "You don't like him because he's my ex but I'm married to _you_, we're making a baby together. You don't need to worry about Benn."

"What was he talking your ear off about?" Chase asks.

Michelle applies her mascara. "He told me that Nicky's band, Spell Broken, is going touring next month."

"Isn't that when Hope is scheduled to have surgery?"

"Yep." Michelle smoothes on a deep red lipstick before smacking her lips together while looking in the mirror. "That's what we were talking about."

"It's a shame Nicky can't go touring with his band!" Chase's voice carries through the open bathroom door. "He's been waiting a long time for this opportunity to come along."

"Nicky's still going." Michelle touches up her lipstick with a cotton swab before applying gloss. She wants to look perfect for Chase tonight.

"What?"

"Nicky's still going on the tour!" Michelle calls out to him. She gives herself a final look-over in the bathroom mirror.

"He's going to be on the road when Hope has open heart surgery?" Chase can't believe it. "You've got to be kidding me?"

Michelle walks out of the bathroom. "He's going to fly home for a few days around the time of her surgery and then fly back to New York."

"That's ridiculous!" Chase exclaims. "It's heart surgery, she's not having a wart removed."

Michelle sits on the bed. "Benn told me that Nicky asked to postpone the tour but the tickets were sold out. If he cancelled the tour Benn's agency would never give his band another chance."

"Some great guy Benn Golder is." Chase scoffs.

"It's not Benn's decision." Michelle defends her ex. "He's the record producer, he doesn't own the company label."

"I'm sure Benn has a lot of influence if he's the record producer." Chase insists.

"Benn's doing his job by looking out for Broken Spell and like I said it's not only his decision."

Chase argues. "The bottom line is it's Nicky's decision whether he should go or not." Chase shakes his head. "Nicky's another one like Tess who puts work before family."

"You're looking at this with tunnel vision, Babe. You only see one point of view."

"How do you see it?" Chase asks, defensively.

Michelle scoots up closer to Chase on the bed. "Well," Michelle exhales. "If Nicky cancelled the trip he's not only hurting his career but the band's career too. The band has been waiting for an opportunity like this to come along for years. Nicky's the lead singer, if he dropped out the fans would be pissed."

"His child should come first." Chase says, annoyed.

"I told you Nicky's going to fly home before the surgery and stay a few days."

"What if the baby has complications?"

"Let's pray for the baby's sake she doesn't have any complications." Michelle rubs Chase's chest.

"Nicky shouldn't leave his family at a time like this. It's selfish."

"Chase, this has been Nicky's dream since he was a kid. It's his band's first tour on their own to promote their new album. It's a chance of a lifetime for him."

Chase scoffs. "And everything else doesn't matter? Not even his kid?"

"Hope matters to him or he wouldn't be flying home for the surgery." Michelle defends Nicky.

Chase throws an arm up in the air. "How generous of him. Let's all bow down to Nick Poulos."

Michelle sighs. "Can we not argue about Nicky and worry about starting our own family?" Michelle moves in to kiss Chase. He kisses her back but she can tell there's no passion to it. They kiss for a minute but he's soft which surprises her since she's wearing his favorite negligee and his favorite perfume. She tries to pump him up while kissing him for another two minutes but nothing happens. "What's going on?" She asks.

"I don't know. I'm not in the mood anymore after arguing about Nicky." Chase grumbles.

"Great." Michelle scoots away from Chase. "Nicky already has four kids and we can't even make one tonight because of him."

Chase gets up to blow out the candles "I can't get back in the mood now. We can try again tomorrow."

"Good night." Michelle waits for Chase to come back to bed to give him a good night kiss.

Chases finishes blowing out the candles and plops back down on the bed. Michelle reaches over to kiss him on the cheek. "My mother taught me to never go to sleep mad," she tells him.

Chase nods. "Good night." He gives her a gentle kiss on the forehead before lying on his back. He tries to fall back to sleep. Michelle rolls over to face the wall. This baby making night didn't go too well, she thinks.

* * *

Cooper joins Charlotte in bed. "How was your day at work?"

"Exhausting." Charlotte answers.

"How long until they find another Chief of Staff?" Cooper asks.

"Do I look like a fortune teller to you? It'll take as long as it takes."

"Grouchy." Cooper comments to himself.

"What?" Charlotte turns to look at him.

"I just said I hope it's soon." Cooper climbs in bed. "Andie's going to need you once Nicky starts his tour next month and Hope has the surgery."

"The surgery's gonna be at St. Ambrose. I'll be there for Andie while I'm at work."

"But what about the other kids; Harper, Charley and Michael Nikolas?" Cooper asks,

"You'll have to keep your eyes on them while I'm at the hospital with Andie and Hope." Charlotte suggests.

"That's three little kids to look after plus a teenager or did you forget about your son?"

"I didn't forget about Drew but he's fourteen now, he's independent." Charlotte answers. "Maybe Michelle can help out too."

"Fourteen year olds need to be watched, this is the age where they start to go down the wrong path and get mixed up with the wrong crowd if you don't stay on top of them."

"So, stay on top of him, Coop, I don't know what to tell you. I've already told the board I would fill in as Chief of Staff until they find a replacement. I have no idea how long that will be and I discussed this with you first."

"That's before we knew Nicky was going to be away, leaving Andie with four young kids one of whom needs heart surgery and a cleft lip and palate repair." Cooper explains.

"Nicky's going to fly home the week of the surgery." Charlotte tells him.

"Big whoop!" Cooper rolls his eyes.

There's a knock on the bedroom door. "Come in." Charlotte calls out.

"Can I sleep with you tonight, Nan?" Harper asks.

"What's wrong?" Charlotte holds her arms out to her nine year old teary eyed granddaughter.

"I had a bad dream."

"What was it about?" Cooper asks.

"A crazy doll with red hair and no mouth was chasing me around with a knife. I'm scared." Harper crawls on the bed and situates herself between Charlotte and Cooper.

"Were you watching those *Child's Play* movies with Drew again?" Charlotte asks.

"I wanted to watch *Despicable Me* but Drew said we had to watch *Child's Play* first." Harper tells them.

"Chucky strikes again." Cooper chuckles. "But Chucky has a mouth. Why didn't the doll in your dream have a mouth?"

"Cooper, do you mind?" Charlotte shoots him the stink eye before turning her attention back to Harper. "You don't halfta listen to everything Drew tells you to do." Charlotte advices. "If you didn't want to watch *Child's Play* with him you should have left the room."

"His girlfriend never saw *Child's Play* before." Harper tells them. "I like his girlfriend, so I watched it with them."

"Drew has a girlfriend?" Cooper asks.

"Yeah, her name is Ruby."

"The new girl he told us about from Australia?" Charlotte asks.

"Yeah," Harper nods. "She's really fat but she's really nice and super fun. I love the way she talks. She calls us her mates and she's a great surfer but we can only go to the beach before it gets dark to watch her surf."

"Why before dark?" Cooper srews up his face.

"Because people stare at her if she wears a bathing suit at the beach because she's fat. She wants to go back home to Australia but Drew and I want her to stay." Harper explains.

"She shouldn't worry about those people staring at her. They're not nice." Cooper tweaks Harpers nose. "Don't ever be like them."

"I'm not." Harper smiles. "I stick my tongue out at them."

"Thatta girl." Cooper chuckles. "I taught you well."

"Harper, what did we tell you about judging people by their appearance?" Charlotte asks.

"That I'll miss out on making friends with the best people."

"Right." Cooper adds, "and, you don't want to be judgemental and rude like those people at the beach."

"What's judge... a ...mental mean?" Harper asks.

"It means forming an opinion about someone before you get to know them."

"That's a stupid thing to do." Harper responds.

"That's right." Charlotte tells her. "Now that you got to know Ruby and found out you like her a lot, how about you give your little sister Hope a chance?"

"I guess." Harper shrugs.

"Good." Cooper kisses Harper goodnight. "I'll take you to visit Hope and your momma after school tomorrow."

"Goodnight." Charlotte gives both Harper and Cooper a kiss before resting her head on the pillow for some well deserved sleep.


	28. Chapter 28

_**CHAPTER 28**_

* * *

Cooper and Charlotte drive Harper to Andie and Nicky's house. Nicky lets them in.

"We weren't expecting you to be home this early. Slacking off?" Cooper jokes with Nicky, patting his son-in-law on the back as he walks in the house.

"Nah," Nicky gives a shake of his head. "I came home early. I need to start packing for the tour."

"Poppa!" Harper hugs Nicky tight.

"Hey, rabbit, I hear you're ready to meet your sister."

"I guess," Harper nods, hesitantly. "I promised Nan and grandpa I would."

"Okay then." Nicky carries Harper into the playroom. "She's in her infant swing."

"She can sit in a swing?" Harper asks.

"Course, she can." Nicky carries Harper over to the swing where Hope's sitting, Charley's playing with his train set while Michael's toddling around from toy to toy."

"Where's Andie?" Charlotte asks.

"I told her to take a nap when I got home from work." Nicky kneels down in front of Hope's swing with Harper.

"Why does that baby have those tubes in her nose?" Harper points to Hope.

"Hope has those tubes to give her extra oxygen when she coughs or cries so she doesn't turn as blue." Nicky explains. "But after her heart surgery she won't need the tubes in her nose anymore."

"How can she eat with her mouth split open?" Harper stares at Hope's cleft lip.

"We have a special bottle for her." Nicky shows Harper the bottle.

"Oh." Harper studies the custom made bottle. "Can she drink out of it?"

"She sure can." Nicky responds.

Harper looks at Hope now. "I like her purple dress and her bow." Harper gently plays with the bow in Hope's hair. "And I like her little purple shoes too." She plays with Hope's foot.

"See Harp," Cooper looks on. "Hope is just like any other baby."

"Can I feed her the bottle?" Harper asks.

"Only if there's an adult around because if you don't do it right she'll gag and turn blue." Nicky tells Harper. "Do you still want to try?"

"Yes." Harper takes the bottle from Nicky.

"Put it in her mouth very gentle." Nicky guides nine year old Harper. "And it's important that she's sitting upright when you feed her. The gravity helps the milk to go down without her gagging on it."

Harper gently places the bottle in Hope's mouth. The almost four month old baby begins sucking on it. "I'm doing it, daddy, look she's eating it."

"Great job, Harp," Charlotte looks on, smiling.

"She's watching me." Harper tells them. Hope sucks on her bottle and looks at the nine year old feeding her.

"She's checking out her big sister." Nicky tells her.

"I wonder what she's thinking about me." Harper smiles.

Cooper jokes. "She's probably wondering -'who is this girl feeding me with the big full lips?' "

Charlotte elbows Cooper. "Not funny."

Harper tells Charlotte. "Maybe she does think that, Nan, because my mouth is different than hers. Maybe she thinks _I'm _the one who looks weird. I'm going to show her that I'm nice and fun even though I look different than her."

"See?" Cooper tells Charlotte. "I taught her that."

"No." Charlotte answers back. "_WE_ taught her that."

_**MEANWHILE IN GEORGIA:**_

Tess is running on the paved trail in the park with her jogging stroller. A nice looking blonde man runs by then stops and calls out, "Tess Powers?"

Tess turns around. "Yes?"

The tall blonde man jogs over. "I'm Billy Jake Walters, everyone called me BJ in high school, remember me?"

"Of course I remember you. We were on cross country track freshman year."

"I didn't know you were back in Georgia?" He smiles. "It's nice to see you again."

"I just moved back last year. I've been keeping to myself mostly." She gestures down to Brayden in the stroller.

"Cute kid." Billy Jake tells her. "So, you're a married woman with kids now?"

"I'm not. I broke up with my fiancé before my son was born. It's a long complicated story. I won't bore you with the details. So, what have you been doing with yourself since high school?" Tess asks.

"I'm divorced, no kids."

"Divorced already? Tess asks. "I haven't even been married yet."

"I married Mary Lou Sanders, she was my high school sweetheart but it didn't work out."

"Sorry, to hear that."

"Nah...It's better this way. I'm better off without her."

"Why?" Tess doesn't mean to be nosy but she's curious.

"She cheated on me with Tommy Dawson. Remember him?"

Tess nods. "That's why I broke up with _my_ high school sweetheart, my fiancé, same thing, he cheated on me and that was it for us. I moved back here."

Billy Jake looks at the baby. "He must have cheated on you while you were already pregnant then?'

"Yep, but he didn't know I was pregnant yet. It was early on and it turns out he married the bimbo he cheated on me with."

"Isn't that funny?" Billy Jake says.

"How is that funny?" Tess furrows her brow.

"Because Mary Lou married Tommy Dawson. They have a baby boy now."

"I wouldn't be surprised if Chase and that bimbo have a kid on the way too." Tess groans.

"I guess we have something in common." Billy Jake tells Tess.

"I guess we do." Tess nods.

"You wanna go out for dinner some night and talk about old times?" Billy Jake asks.

Tess thinks. "Why not?" Chase is married and she hasn't so much as looked at another guy until now, why should she say no, she thinks.

"Here's my phone number." Billy pulls out his phone to show her. Tess types his number into her phone and shows him hers.

"I'll call you tonight to set it up." Billy Jake tells Tess.

"Great, Billy, I'll look forward to it."

"Call me BJ, nobody's called me Billy-Jake since I was a kid."

"Alright, BJ. I'll talk to you tonight." Tess continues on her run with Brayden in the stroller.

* * *

Chase comes home from work to find Michelle waiting for him in bed in a pink and black silk negligee. "Isn't it a little early for bed?" Chase asks.

"It's too early for sleep but not too early for bed." Michelle flirts.

"Ohhhh." Chase looks at her in the negligee. "You want to have sex now?"

"I want to make a baby now." Michelle pats the vacant place next to her on the bed. Chase sits down, Michelle begins to undo his tie. Next, she moves her hand down between his thighs to check if her negligee turns him on. Nope, he's still deflated. She rubs her hand over him but gets no reaction from below. Up above he's kissing her trying to get himself in the mood. She unbuttons and unzips his pants before snaking her hand into his boxers. She grabs him and pumps for a good three minutes which seems like eternity to her. After the three minutes are up and he's still soft she flops down on her back.

"I'm sorry." He tells her. "I don't know what's wrong with me tonight."

"Performance anxiety." She tells him.

"But why? We're married. I shouldn't be nervous to perform for you. We've done it over a hundred times already."

Michelle rubs her hand over her head. "You're putting to much pressure on yourself to get me pregnant and it's backfiring. How am I ever going to get pregnant if you can't get it up?"

"_I'm _putting too much pressure on me to get you pregnant? How about _you_?" Chase asks. "You cry every month when you get your period or your pregnancy test comes back negative. You're the one putting the pressure on me."

"You want a baby just as bad as me." Michelle accuses.

"But I don't cry about it every month and make you feel bad for not getting pregnant." Chase shoots.

"Huh?" Michelle screws up her face.

"You know what I mean." Chase tells her. "How do you think it makes me feel each month to watch you cry because I wasn't man enough to knock you up and the one time I did you lost it."

"Chase?" Michelle's surprised to hear him say this. "I cried because I wanted to be pregnant. I'm not blaming you that it's not happening or for my miscarriage. I never said or implied there was something wrong with you. I know you're capable of getting a woman pregnant."

Chase screws up his face. "How would you know that?"

Michelle's at a loss for words. She can't tell him he got Tess pregnant once before. She thinks. "Because you got me pregnant once."

"Maybe I have defective sperm and that's why you had a miscarriage." Chase sighs.

"Or it could be me. Maybe there's something wrong with my body?" Michelle responds.

"It hasn't been that long, Michelle, you're putting too much pressure on both of us. Getting pregnant is supposed to be fun, not work and right now it feels like a job, it's not fun."

"Fine." Michelle says. "We'll take a break from it for a few months." Michelle picks up her pillow and blanket.

"Where are you going?" Chase asks.

"Since we're not making a baby tonight, I'm sleeping in the guest room." Michelle walks away with her pillow and blanket.

Chase shakes his head and goes into the bathroom.


	29. Chapter 29

_**CHAPTER 29**_

* * *

Cooper makes pancakes for Charlotte and Drew. "It's so quiet around here without Harper." Charlotte sits down with her coffee.

"And the two boys," Drew adds. "It feels weird now that they're all back home with Andie and Nicky."

"Don't worry." Cooper smirks. "They'll be back once Nicky leaves for his tour. Andie's going to need all the help she can get with those four kids."

"Enjoy the peace and quiet while it lasts." Charlotte sips her coffee.

"So, Drew?" Cooper turns around as he flips a pancake. "Harper tells us you have a girlfriend."

"I do?" Drew feigns innocence.

Charlotte speaks, casually. "The new girl in school, Ruby, I believe is her name?"

"Oh." Drew sips his orange juice. "We're just good mates. We hang out but she's not my girlfriend."

"Who is?" Cooper asks.

"Nobody." Drew shrugs pretending it doesn't matter.

"That's fine." Charlotte tells them. "You don't need a girlfriend at fifteen."

"I guess." Drew cuts up his pancake.

"Tell us about Ruby." Cooper coaxes before putting a pancake on Charlotte's plate.

"She's nice and she's fun." Drew answers. "She's an amazing surfer. She's started when she was about three."

"Nice." Charlotte nods.

"Yeah, except she's thinking about going back to Australia."

"Why?"

"She doesn't like LA. She's hoping her dad will move back to New York or Florida so she doesn't have to go back to live with her mom in OZ."

"What's wrong with LA?" Charlotte asks, before taking a sip of coffee.

Drew shrugs. "New York and Florida have beaches she can surf at and she'd rather live in the US with her dad than go back to Australia and live with her mom."

"Is there a problem with her mother?" Cooper asks.

"Ruby doesn't like her step dad. She'd rather live here with her real dad but just not in LA." Drew explains.

"What's wrong with LA?" Charlotte asks Drew again.

"She's overweight and you wouldn't believe the way people look at her at the beach, like they never saw an overweight person in a bathing suit. Some of them even laugh at her. It's crazy."

"That's LA." Cooper agrees. "I wouldn't want to be an overweight woman on the beach here either. I'd starve myself before putting a bathing suit on." He makes light of it.

"Cooper," Charlotte smacks his arm as he puts another pancake on her plate. "There's no excuse for those people to be rude to her. If she loses weight it should be for her health, not to please the snobs."

"You're right, you're right. My bad." Cooper sits down to breakfast.

* * *

Michelle wakes up on the couch and pads into the bedroom. It's obvious Chase woke up extra early so he could be out of the house before she woke up. "How did everything get to be such a mess?" She says to herself. She thinks again about karma and how she's being punished for hiding the letter and sonogram pictures that Tess left on Chase's desk before she left town. Michelle opens her bottom drawer and pulls out a locked up wooden box. She opens it with a little key and pulls out the envelope containing the letter and the sono pictures. She looks over the pictures and knows that Tess must have had the baby by now. It's probably about six months old, she calculates. She places everything back in the box. She shivers at the thought Tess could come back to town one day with the baby since her parents still live in LA. She's sure to come back and visit her parents sooner or later. She hopes that Tess is involved with another man by then or that she, herself, is pregnant before Tess comes back to town so Chase won't leave her.

* * *

IN GEORGIA

Tess shows up at the quaint restaurant to meet Billy-Jake or BJ.

"You look nice." BJ tells her.

"Thank you." Tess sits down across from him.

"Where's the baby?"

"My grandma insisted I leave him with her. She thinks I'm on a date and since I haven't had a date since I broke up with Chase she thinks I need one real bad."

BJ laughs.

"Is this a date?" Tess asks. "Or did I get my gram all excited over nothing?"

"You can call it whatever you want, call it a date or call it old friends catching up." BJ sips his soft drink. "I brought this along because I thought you were going to bring the baby." BJ hands her a rattle in the shape of a duck.

"That was nice of you." Tess looks at the little blue rattle.

"It does stuff." BJ tells her. "If you press it here, it lights up and if you press it here it plays music." BJ continues, "and if you shake it, it vibrates. Babies love that especially if they're teething."

"How do you know so much about babies?" Tess smiles.

"I have two nephews and I'm a pediatric dentist."

"Babies go to the dentist?" Tess inquires while playing with the rattle.

"I recommend they start seeing me at age three." BJ tells her in his dentist mode. "But parents will ask me what to do about teething and this rattle seems to help with that. I recommend keeping it in the fridge so it's cold on his gums."

"Well, thank you, Brayden is teething right now." Tess puts the rattle in her purse. "I'll have to try the rattle out on him."

"I figured he was about that age."

"You figured right." Tess picks up her menu.

"You should also clean his gums after you feed him. I recommend parents do that from the beginning."

Tess smiles. "Well, it's nice to have a dentist handy. I'll have to remember that."

"So, what so you do for a living?" BJ asks.

"I'm enrolled in the Ob-Gyn residency program at the University Hospital but I'm taking a leave from it until Brayden turns one."

"That's nice." BJ tells her. "It's great that you want to take his first year off to be with him. Babies develop so much in the first year."

"Dont I know it." Tess answers. "I can't believe my baby's starting to crawl already."

"Is he really now?" BJ puts down his menu.

"He's just starting but he can scoot around on his bottom. It's so cute." Tess laughs as she tells BJ. It feels good to talk about Brayden to someone else besides her grandmother.

"Sounds like a neat trick. I've got to see that."

"Do you want to go jogging with me and Brayden at the park tomorrow morning? Maybe he'll show you his neat trick after."

"I'd love it." BJ smiles. "As a matter of fact, you _can_ call this a date."


	30. Chapter 30

_**CHAPTER 30**_

* * *

Tess meets BJ at the park. After a quick hug hello, BJ takes a peek at Brayden in the stroller. "Are you ready for a run, young man?"

"He loves it." Tess boasts. "He loves the breeze on his face and watching the other joggers we pass."

"It won't be long before he can start jogging along with us." BJ stands on one foot, pulling his other foot up behind him to stretch his calf out before the run.

"First he has to master crawling and then learn to walk. Don't rush him." Tess warms up along side BJ.

"Ah, you're one of those momma's who wants to savor every moment."

"It goes too fast. I can't believe he's almost seven months old. It feels like he was just born. Now he's eating off a spoon and starting to crawl. I can't imagine it but in another year he'll be toddling around and starting to talk."

"It goes fast." BJ responds. "I've seen it with my brothers kids. It feels like they were just born but the oldest one is already taking the bus to school."

"I don't want to even think about putting my baby on the bus for kindergarten." Tess chuckles. "I'll probably cry more than he does."

"Let me see." BJ leans over the jogging stroller to look in Brayden's mouth. "It looks like his first tooth has already erupted."

"It has." Tess nods. "And he has another one coming in. He's been cranky at night because of it."

"I can give you and some herbal pellets that I recommend to my patients with teething babies. They're all natural and the parents swear they work."

Tess nods her head. "I'm definitely interested in trying that."

"Shall we begin our run?" BJ asks.

Tess starts to jog alongside BJ while pushing Brayden in the jogging stroller. Jogging with a guy makes her think if Chase. She can't help it. She feels sad now thinking about how Chase is missing out on Brayden's life. He's not there to witness Brayden's first baby tooth come in. He's not there to watch Brayden learn to crawl and he's not going to be there for his first steps or his first day of kindergarten. Tears comes to her eyes at the thought but she doesn't let them fall. She can't cry in front of BJ, he'll surely want to know what the tears are about. She can't fathom how Chase who has always loved children cannot want to be a part of his own child's life. She left him the note and the sono pictures. How could he just ignore the fact that he has a kid? Does Michelle have that much of a spell over him? What is it about her? Now she thinks about the day she caught him and Michelle doing the horizontal bop on his desk, the same day she was going to tell him she was pregnant. If BJ looked at her eyes now he would see anger instead of tears as her eyes narrow at the thought of Chase with Michelle. Chase had the gall to marry that bimbo. Never mind, now she remembers why she never wants to see Chase Freedman again.

* * *

Michelle walks into work. She heads right for Chase's office and closes the door. "We need to talk."

Chase looks up, annoyed. "About what?"

Michelle huffs. "How long can we live like this?"

"Like what?"

"You leave early in the morning before I'm awake and you come home late after I'm in bed." Michelle accuses.

"So?"

"So, do you still want to be married to me or not?" Michelle thinks a minute. "Are you cheating on me?"

"You know I would never do that." Chase answers, annoyed.

"You cheated on Tess with me so how do I know you're not cheating on me?"

"I wasn't married to Tess."

"You were engaged that's just as bad."

"No, it's not. We didn't say our vows in front of all our family and friends because Tess wouldn't commit to a wedding date." Chase scoffs. "Tess wouldn't commit to kids until she established her career."

Michelle huffs, annoyed. "Why are we talking about Tess?"

"You brought up her name first, not me."

"Well, I don't want to talk about Tess, I want to talk about us."

"So, talk."

"I don't want to live like this anymore, Chase. I want us to fix things. I want to drive into work with you again. I want to eat dinner with my husband. Is that too much to ask?"

"No." Chase answers, quietly.

"So, can we just forget this agrument we're having?" Michelle pleads.

"It's hard for me to forget since I can't get it up and get you pregnant."

"You need to relax." Michelle rubs Chase's shoulders now. "You're too stressed over it."

"It's easier to say than to do. You just have to lay there. I need to get it up and come up with the baby juice to impregnant you." Chase sighs.

"Maybe you can talk to your momma. She's a sexologist." Michelle suggests.

"I can't talk to my mother about this." Chase scoffs. "No way am I telling my momma I can't get it up."

"But that's her job. She treats men for this problem all the time."

"I'm not talking to my momma about this!" Chase stresses.

"How about another doctor? Maybe they'll give you Viagra or something." Michelles suggests.

"I guess but I'll have to go out of town and find a doctor who doesn't know me or my parents."

"Good." Michelle smiles now. "Let's look on the internet and find a doctor out of town for you to see."

Chase types in a search for sexologists in cities bodering LA.

* * *

Drew lets Ruby in the front door. "G'day Mate." She greets.

"Good day."

"Where's Harper?"

"She's back home with her parents so it's just me now and of course my parents."

"Yes, of course." Ruby follows Drew into the kitchen.

Drew pours some barbecue chips in a large bowl. "What do you want to do today?"

"I'm not keen on studying." Ruby snatches a chip.

"Me neither." Drew agrees. "But we have that big science test tomorrow."

"We could always wag tomorrow." Ruby offers.

"Does that mean cut school?" Drew asks.

"Reckin so." Ruby munches on the chip.

"I can't do that." Drew tells Ruby. "My parents will kill me. Now that I'm the only kid in the house they watch me like a hawk watches a mouse."

"My father doesn't care, he lets me do what I want and my mum is in Australia." Ruby grabs another chip.

"Lucky you." Drew tosses Ruby a can of cola.

Ruby catches it with one hand. "No worries, I'll study for the test with you, if you like."

"Good." Drew gets up to get the science books from the counter. "Do you want to go surfing after we're done studying?"

"I'm afraid you'll have to come to Australia if you want to watch me surf."

"Why?"

Ruby opens up the science book."I can't wear my cossie to the beach here without a lairy mob gawking at me."

"Translation please." Drew raises his eyebrows.

Ruby lets out an exacerbated sigh before explaining. "Everyone on the beach here has a perfect body. If I go on the beach in my swim costume they look at me like I'm a freak. Got it?"

"Got it." Drew nods. "Don't worry about other people. Just ignore them."

"It's a lot easier to say than to do. I miss Oz." Ruby flips through the pages of Drew's science book.

"Are you still thinking about moving back there?"

"I reckon'."

"But I'm here." Drew gives a big smile.

"Tru dat." Ruby answers with a giggle waiting for Drew's reaction.

"Ha, ha, you're picking up _our_ slang fast. Now you have to stay." Drew implies.

"I do?"

"Yep, because if you moved back to Australia, I'd miss you. You're my only real friend now that Sarah's dating Kyle."

"You're my only true mate here too." Ruby grabs another chip.

"How could you leave your best mate?" Drew tries his best to make sad eyes at her.

"You're making it tough on me to decide." Ruby quirks an eyebrow.

"Tell me what I can do to convince you to stay."

"Just keep being my best mate." Ruby tells Drew before she sipping on her soda.

"I can do better than that."

"How?" Ruby's eyes widen slightly.

"I can be your boyfriend." Drew says, appealingly.

"Seriously?"

"Seriously." Drew nods, grinning.

"You're sweet. I didn't think I'd be able to have a boyfriend until I lost one-hundred pounds."

"I like you just the way you are."

"It's nice to meet someone like you. You're not like the other kids at school."

"My parents get the credit for that."

"Then you're the lucky one." Ruby tells. "Your oldies sound neat. Too bad there aren't more of them around."

"There are, not everyone around here is fake and shallow. If you stick around longer I'll introduce you to some decent people I know."

"I'd love that."

"I want you to meet my parents first." Drew takes her hand, giving it a squeeze. "Since you're my girlfriend, right?"

"Right." Ruby plants a light kiss on his cheek. "I think I'm going to like your oldies."

"And they're going to love you." Drew looks at the science book. "Ready to study so we can kill this exam tomorrow?'

"Ready." Ruby opens her book. "I've never been happier to study for a science exam in my life." She tells him.


	31. Chapter 31

_**CHAPTER 31**_

* * *

Andie walks out of the bathroom, her hair is still soaking wet from her shower.

"I'm ready to go." Nicky gives her a hug and a kiss on the head.

"Is that all I get?" She asks before pressing her lips firmly into his. "I'm going to miss you like crazy."

"I'll be back Sunday night, Belle." Nicky assures her. "I'll be gone less then a week. Take care of our precious cargo while I'm gone."

"You know it." Andie tries to smile.

"My mom said to call her if you need anything. She promised to take Harper and Charley to see that movie this Saturday."

"I know." Andie nods her understanding.

Nicky gives Hope a sweet kiss on her soft head of dark hair. "Poppa will be back before your surgery, sweet girl." He pats the sleeping baby gently before walking down the hall to the boy's bedroom. He gives both Charley and Michael Nikolas a soft kiss on the cheek while they sleep. He walks across the hall to Harper's room and does the same.

"Poppa!" Harper jolts up into his arms.

"Goodbye, rabbit." Nicky hugs his nine-year old daughter. "I have to go play with the band but I'll be back Sunday night. You take care of your momma and help out with the little ones."

"I wanna go with you, poppa." Harper clings to Nicky's neck.

"Sorry, rabbit, but you have to go to school and I'll be busy working. I can't play with you while I'm in New York."

"Please don't go, poppa." Harper begs.

"How 'bout if I bring you back a big surprise?"

"Kay." Harper nods in agreement. "Can you stop at The American Girl Factory Store?"

"I was planning on it." Nicky smiles. "How can I go to New York and not stop at The American Girl Store?" Nicky tweaks Harper's nose. Andie looks on adoringly at her husband and daughter.

"Which doll are you going to get me?" Harper's eyes are wide with excitement.

"If I told you that it wouldn't be a surpise." Nicky hugs Harper again. "Now go back to sleep, rabbit. You have another hour before you need to wake up for school."

"Bye, poppa, I love you." Harper calls out as Nicky leaves the room.

"It's my turn." Andie grabs Nicky in the hallway, pressing up against him to give him a huge wet kiss.

"I'm only going to be gone for a few days, Belle." Nicky chuckles. "I'm not going off to war."

"Okay." Andie wipes her lips with the back of her hand.

"You be good." Nicky pats her bottom before he heads for the front door. "I'll text you when I get there."

Andie waves goodbye to her husband.

* * *

Drew walks in the hallway at school holding hands with Ruby. After he leaves Ruby at her locker Sarah walks up to Drew. "Why were you holding hands with her?" Sarah asks.

"Because she's my girlfriend." Drew pulls some books out of his locker.

"You've gotta be kidding me?"

"I'm not." Drew closes his locker.

"She outweighs you by about a hundred pounds."

"Since when have you been so shallow? Oh yeah, when you started dating Kyle." Drew scoffs.

"I'm your friend, Drew, and I'm telling you that you look ridiculous walking around holding hands with her." Sarah insists.

Drew responds with a grimace before revealing, "there's a lot of things I don't like about _your_ boyfriend either."

"Drew… Sarah goes on. "You were upset before because kids were teasing you for being short, you look even smaller next to Ruby. Kids see a big fat girl walking next to a small guy and they're gonna laugh."

"Ruby's an inch shorter than me." Drew defends Ruby. "She's about the only one around here who makes me feel big."

"She may be shorter than you but she's much bigger." Sarah quirks an eyebrow, waiting for his response.

"She's also a lot nicer than anyone else at this school. She's never teased me about my height or anything. I like being around her. She makes me feel good."

Sarah folds her arms against her chest. "Be prepared to get laughed at and don't say I didn't warn you." Sarah walks away.

Ruby walks over to Drew's locker. "What did Sarah want?"

"She was just saying hi." Drew lies to protect Ruby's feelings.

"Maybe we could double date with Sarah and her boyfriend one day." Ruby suggests.

Drew shakes his head. "I don't think so, I don't like Sarah's boyfriend."

"Oh well, hoo roo." Ruby gives Drew a kiss on the cheek before she hurries off to her first class of the day. Drew notices some other students looking at him. He gives a nod amd small smile before walking to his class.

* * *

Chase surprises Michelle with lunch at work. "Where were you this morning?" Michelle asks. "You snuck out of the house early again and didn't answer your phone. The receptionist said you called in to take the morning off."

"I wanted to surprise you." Chase smiles.

"Huh?" Michelle looks bewildered.

"Here." Chase hands her an envelope.

Michelle looks inside at two round trip tickets to Aruba. "Wow!" She hugs Chase.

"I looked at your calendar and booked the trip for next week because it's your fertile time of the month."

Michelle laughs. "Yeah, I know that. I've kinda been keeping tract."

"I also went to a doctor across town and got a prescription for these." Chase pulls a prescription bottle of Viagra out of his pocket. "So, when we go to Aruba, I'll be ready to make that baby with you."

"That's great." Michelle kisses Chase. "But I think we should wait and save those pills until then so it's special."

"I couldn't agree more." Chase kisses Michelle back.

"Wait." Michelle breaks the kiss. "Hope's having her heart surgery next week."

"It's okay." Chase tells her. "My parents will be here and Nicky's flying back on Sunday night before the surgery."

"Okay." Michelle nods. "But what it if there's a complication and…-"

"Then we fly home if something like that happens but let's think positive and have a good time in Aruba next week."

"Got it." Michelle and Chase sit down in the kitchen to eat their lunch.


	32. Chapter 32

_**CHAPTER 32**_

* * *

"So, according to Jolie," Cooper says as he sits next to Charlotte on the couch. "The surgery should take no more than six hours."

"Mm...hmm," Charlotte agrees, her attention is focused on Andie, pacing back and for across the living room.

Andie tells them in a shaky voice. "Nicky just texted me. He's down the street. He'll be here any minute."

"Good." Charlotte nods her understanding. She can cut the tension emanating off of her daughter with a knife and it pains her. She wants to hug her and take all this away.

Cooper reaches over and rubs Charlotte's back offering comfort in the only way he can. He knows it pains Charlotte as much as it does him to see his daughter crumbling before their eyes over their granddaughter's heart surgery tomorrow morning.

Nicky makes his entrance. "Sorry, I'm late." He tells them. "The plane was delayed."

"How's your tour going?" Cooper asks to break the tension of what everyone is really thinking about.

"It's going great." Nicky hugs Andie hello. Andie squeezes him, clutching on tighter than ever. "Are you okay?" He asks.

"Just nervous about the surgery tomorrow moning. Go freshen up from your flight and then we have to leave for the hospital. The doctors want to admit Hope tonight to prep her for surgery first thing in the morning."

"How are the other kids?" Nicky asks. "I've got surprises for all of them." Nick's holding a big bag along with his carry-on.

"They're sleeping. Harper has school in the morning and Charley has pre-k." Charlotte answers.

"I guess I'll see them tomorrow then." Nicky hurries up the steps to change and get ready to take Hope to the hospital.

"That poor boy," Charlotte shakes her head. "He's been boppin' around stage all week then he has to take a flight home to spend his days off at a hospital waiting for his baby to have heart surgery."

Cooper answers, indifferently. "He's not a boy, Chief, he's a grown man, he wanted four kids, he needs to be able to handle it."

Andie carries Hope down the stairs with her diaper bag. "Okay, say goodbye to Nan and Grandpa, we have to go now."

Charlotte bites her tongue hard to keep herself under control. She pinches her thigh at the same time to keep the tears at bay before she kisses the five month old dark haired baby girl goodbye. She expects everything will turn out fine. Hope is being operated on by the best pediatric cardiac surgeon in LA and Jolie is going to do the cleft lip repair but truth be told it is major surgery and Hope's a small fragile infant. Charlotte takes a deep breath before kissing the baby girl again. "Nan loves you."

Now it's Cooper's turn. He's having a harder time keeping his tears at bay as he kisses his granddaughter goodbye. Charlotte digs her heel into his foot. Luckily, he's not wearing shoes so the pain is enough to distract him from breaking down in tears. "Goodbye, Sweetie." He says before giving Charlotte a the stink eye.

Nicky jogs down the steps. "I'm ready to go."

"You got everything under control here?" Andie asks her parents.

"Yep." Charlotte runs through the list. "I'll take Harper to the bus stop in the morning while your father drives Charley to Pre-k, then we'll take Michael Nikolas to storytime at the library, after that he'll be ready for lunch and a nap. Then we'll pick Charley up from pre-k and wait for Harper at the bus stop."

"You've got it, momma." Andie nods.

"We've only done it a million times before." Cooper reminds.

"Okay, we're leaving." Andie lifts up Hope's little arm and waves goodbye to Charlotte and Cooper. After they close the door, Charlotte flys into the kitchen like a bat out of hell.

"What the heck?" Cooper follows her. "How hungry can you be?" He strides after her into the kitchen with his hands raised up in question. He spots Charlotte leaning over the sink. Her shoulders are heaving up and down heavily. "Chief, are you crying ?" He asks." She doesn't respond, her shoulders continue to heave. He grabs onto her arms turning her around to hug her. She clings to him lettting the water works flow. "It'll be alright. Hope has the best doctors." He tries to comfort her.

Charlotte sniffs back her tears and gives a hard swallow. "We may never see that baby girl again if something goes wrong."

"Nothing's going to go wrong." Cooper offers.

"We don't know that, Coop, it's heart surgery." Charlotte grabs a paper towel off the counter to wipe her nose. "If something does go wrong, it's her heart, she's done."

Cooper tries to lighten the moment. "Take your shoes off." He tells her.

"Why?"

"I want to get back at you for stomping into my foot before with your heel."

It works because Charlotte lets out a little chuckle. "You should have seen your face."

"Why'd you do that?" Cooper asks.

"You were about to start balling when you were saying goodbye. I couldn't let you do that in front of Andie and Nicky. We're doctors, if they see us crying because we're nervous about the surgery how do you think it will make them feel?"

Cooper nods. "Thank you." He rubs her arm. "I thought that was why you did it and for that I thank you for digging a crater sized hole into the top of my foot."

"Anytime," Charlotte pours herself a glass of water.

* * *

Michelle and Chase relax in their hotel room in Aruba. "What a view?" Michelle looks out the window. "We have both the ocean view and the pool view on this side of the hotel."

"Only the best for my baby-mama to be." Chase pours them some champagne. "Here's to making babies." He raises his glass.

Michelle walks over to the bed and sits next to Chase. She takes her champagne glass from him and toasts. "To making babies."

"Mmmm. This is good champagne." Chase finishes the glass in one sip.

"Wow! It must be." Michelle smiles before she tries to sip down her champagne just as fast to relax herself for tonight. She doesn't want a replay of what happened last month when they tried to get pregnant. "Did you take your pill?" She asks.

"I did and it is definitely working." Chase grins.

"No kidding?" Michelle looks down below his waist and notices the large bulge in his shorts that she's been yearning for.

Chase chucles. "I hope it wears off by tomorrow morning so I'm not walking around the beach with a woody all day."

Michelle laughs now. Oh no! I packed your Speedo."

"I don't own a Speedo." Chase smirks.

"Oh."

"But I packed my thong." Chase jokes around.

"I dare you to walk around by the pool in a thong with a huge woody going." Michelle manages to finish her glass of champagne.

"No. My woody is for your eyes only." Chase presses her down into the bed with kisses. "I hope you're ready cuz I'm making love to you all night long."

"I'm more than ready." Michelle runs her fingers through his thick dark hair. "Bring it on."

* * *

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	33. Chapter 33

_**CHAPTER 33**_

* * *

Nicky steps off the elevator at exactly 6:55 in the morning. He knows they're coming to take Hope Charlotte to surgery at 7:00 on the dot. Having to send your four month old child off to heart surgery would make any father a nervous wreck. However, there's something deep inside him that tells him everything will turn out okay. Hope will have her heart repaired and her mouth. She's going to have an amazing life ahead of her after the surgery, no more heart monitors, no more special bottles. Nicky stands transfixed outside the doorway of room 449. He stares at Hope who's awake lying in her crib. She turns her sweet angelic face to look at him with her big blue eyes. She recognizes her daddy, smiling at him before she lets out a few sweet coo sounds. Nicky hurries over to her, he wants her to know he'll always be with her even when he's not.

Andie must hear the noise and jolts up off the cot in the room. "Hope?" Andie rushes over to the crib. Her eyes are half open and puffy, from crying most of the night instead of sleeping. Nicky estimates Andie only fell asleep about an hour ago.

"Hope's okay." Nicky tells his wife. "She's happy, she's smiling at me." He hands her a cup of coffee. "Here, I woke up about fifteen minutes ago and went to the cafeteria."

"Thanks." Andie takes the coffee from him. "What time is it?"

"Probably around seven am."

"Oh, good Lord." Andie panics. "I can't believe I overslept." She drags a hand through her mussed red hair, but her concern is for Hope. "They're going to be coming for her any minute," she tells Nicky. "I can't do this."

Nicky grabs her hand and squeezes it tight. "She's going to be okay, I know it." He looks in Andie's eyes. "You got it?"

Andie stares back into his eyes and nods. She has to get it, there's no other choice. Hope needs this surgery. There's no choice.

Two young nurses step into the room. "How are you this morning?" The young blonde nurse asks.

Nicky nods. "We're good." He's lying, they're scared.

"Are you here for Hope?" Andie looks at the nurse like a deer caught in the headlights.

The dark haired nurse reads Hope's name band and checks her IV before answering. "We're here to take her to the OR."

Nicky picks his baby up and holds her tight against his chest, hugging her. He kisses the top of her head. "I love you, Hopie, you'll be okay." He hands the baby to Andie.

"Momma loves you, Hopie." Andie cradles the baby in her arms. "I'll see you later, okay?" Andie takes a deep breath and sighs. She hands the baby to the nurse before running to the window in tears.

"Is she going to be alright?" The blonde nurse asks Nicky referring to Andie.

Nicky swallows. "I'll take care of her. Please just take care of Hope."

"We will." The nurses both give a small smile to Nicky before leaving the room with Hope. Hope's used to doctors, nurses and hospitals so she doesn't cry when the nurses take her away from her momma and daddy.

Nicky wraps his arms around Andie. "It's okay to cry, Belle. You can cry." He holds her while she sobs until he feels her flop almost lifeless in his arms. He spins her around in his arms to look at her. Her eyes are rolling back in her head, her arms and legs begin to twitch. He lies her on the cot and yells for help. "I need help in here! My wife's having a seizure."

A doctor and a nurse immediately run into the room. "What happened?" The doctor asks.

"She has epilepsy, she was upset about our daughter going to surgery and she started seizing." Nicky explains.

"Is she taking anti-seizure medication?" The doctor blows some oxygen from the wall into Andie's face.

"She takes Tegretol."

"Did she miss any doses?" The nurse asks.

"She may have." Nicky wipes his face. "She's been so worried about the baby these past few days, maybe she forgot to take her own meds."

"Start an IV and give her a seizure dose of valium." The doctor tells the nurse.

* * *

Michelle's eyes flutter open to find Chase staring at her. "What time is it?" She rubs her eyes.

"It's happy hour." He grins, he gestures to his lower half.

"Are you kidding me?" Michelle gawks at his man parts. "Have you deflated at all?"

"I did." Chase laughs. "But I woke up like this again this morning."

"You want to do it again?" Her eyes widen, slightly.

"Oh...Yeah!" He beams.

"I am so coming home from this trip pregnant." Michelle boasts. "If I'm not pregnant after this I will be totally shocked."

"Me too." Chase leaves a trail of kisses from her mouth going down her chin.

"Oooh!" She feels him pressed up against her thigh. "You _are_ feeling randy this morning."

"Oh, yeah." He answers in a muffled voice. "No more pressure, I can go all day."

"I am going to go home so pregnant." Michelle repeats with a big smile across her face. She runs her hands through Chase's thick hair while he pushes into her.

* * *

Andie's admitted to a hospital room after the doctors have the seizure under control with medication. "She's going to sleep most of the day away." The grey-haired doctor tells Nicky. "Between the seizure and the valium she's knocked out. I'll be back to check her later."

Nicky sits next to Andie to hold her hand. He can't help feeling a little jealous, she gets to sleep the day away while he worries about Hope having heart surgery. Nicky picks up the phone.

"Hello?" Charlotte answers.

"Hey," Nicky sighs. "It's me."

Charlotte can tell his voice is strained. "What's wrong, Nicky? Is it Hope?"

"No." Nicky looks around Andie's hospital room while he talks. "Hope's in surgery but Andie had a seizure."

"My Lord."

"I think it was from all the stress, she may have forgot to take her siezure med."

Charlotte sighs. "Poor kid, she's been so stressed about the surgery. Is she doing okay, now?"

"She's sleeping. The doctor says she'll sleep most of the day."

"Aha." Charlotte expresses her understanding. "She's posdictal, she'll sleep."

"She's lucky. I wish I could sleep the day away and wake up after Hope is out of surgery."

"Do you want one of us to come to the hospital and sit with you?" Charlotte offers.

"No, momma." It isn't often that Nicky refers to Charlotte as momma but it feels right at this time. "You take care of the kids. Andie's sleeping anyway and I'm here."

"Okay." Charlotte nods in agreement. "I'm praying for Hope. I'll say a prayer for you and Andie too."

"Thanks, momma." Nicky hangs up.

The room's empty except for a sleeping Andie so Nicky puts his face in his hands and lets it out. He cries for a good ten minutes before a nurse walks in.

"Don't worry." The nurse tells him. "Your wife will be fine. She'll wake up later."

Nicky just nods. His phone rings. It's Cody from the band. Nicky hits ignore.

* * *

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	34. Chapter 34

_**CHAPTER 34**_

* * *

As if having your four month infant in heart surgery isn't bad enough, the realization that your wife is in the hospital after having a grand mal seizure piled on top of it is enough to bring a grown man to tears, Nicky convinces himself it's okay to cry as he wipes his eyes.

A doctor appears in the door way- a guy dressed in blue scrubs who looks vaguely familiar. Nicky's distracted, by everything going on when he suddenly recognizes this doctor as the cardiologist's assistant.

"You're Mr. Poulos, right? I'm Dr. Wartman, I assisted Dr. Baines with Hope's surgery."

Nicky swallows hard before asking. "Is everything okay?"

"Hope is out of surgery. Dr. Baines is with her in the pediatric intensive care unit now."

"Can I see her?"

"Yes, but she's heavily sedated and hooked up to mechanical ventilation. She has a lot of tubes. I want you to be aware. Some parents have a hard time seeing their children like this."

"I need to see her." Nicky wipes his eyes. "Did the operation go okay? Were there any complications?"

"There was a moment where we thought we lost her but we were able to bring her back."

"So, she's okay now?" Nicky asks, desperately.

"Her heart is repaired, we were able to complete the surgery but we'll have to see if she suffered any complications from the cardiac arrest when she wakes up. Dr Jolie Harris was able to complete the cleft lip repair." Jolie walks in the room now.

Jolie's still wearing her scrubs, she shakes Nicky's hand. "How are you?"

Nicky's shaky. He returns the hand shake. "My head is spinning right now. How's Hope?"

"I was able to repair her cleft lip and palate. She has sutures in her mouth and above her lip. It's going to be swollen and red for few days but once it heals you should barely notice the scar."

"Thank you."

Jolie looks over at Andie, asleep, in her hospital bed. "I heard she had a seizure."

"Yeah," Nicky looks over at Andie now too. "This has been too much for her. We think she forgot to take her seizure med."

"Do you want me to take you to see Hope in the pediatric intensive care unit?" Jolie offers, she can tell Nicky's a wreck.

"I'd like that." Nicky follows Jolie out of the room.

* * *

Cooper opens the front door. There's a chubby girl with long blonde hair, about fourteen-years old, standing in front of him.

"G'day, I'm here for Drew." She speaks in an Australian accent.

"Come in." Cooper opens the door wider. "You must be Ruby."

"Hi Ruby." Harper runs to the door. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here for Drew. We're going out to tea with my father."

"Drew doesn't drink tea." Harper responds.

"Oh," Ruby corrects. "He doesn't have to drink any tea. We're actually going to a fish and chips place."

"Then why did you say tea?"

"Because she's from Australia," Cooper tells Harper, amused, before he calls up the steps. "Drew! You have a guest! Tea Time!"

Charlotte comes downstairs instead holding Michael Nikolas. "Nicky called. Hope's finally out of surgery."

"How'd she do?"

"Nicky sounds like he's a wreck. I don't know if he's plain exhausted or what. He said the cardiologist's assistant told him Hope arrested in the OR but they were able to bring her back and complete the heart surgery."

Cooper cringes. "We need to talk to the surgeon and find out what happened."

"I'm on my way to the hospital now." Charlotte hands him Michael Nikolas.

"Is Hopie okay?" Harper asks Charlotte. "Did they fix her mouth?"

"Yes." Charlotte answers. "They fixed her mouth."

Cooper looks around for Drew before calling him again. "Drew!" He calls out before focusing his attention back to Charlotte "I want to come with you to the hospital."

"What about the kids?" Charlotte looks over at Ruby now, unaware who this teenage girl standing in her house is.

Drew bops down the steps. "Yeah?" He immediately smiles at the sight of Ruby standing with his parents. "Hey!" He walks over and gives her a kiss on the cheek. "This is Ruby." He tells everyone.

Cooper shakes Ruby's hand, followed by Charlotte. "Nice to finally meet you." Charlotte tells the girl.

Cooper turns to Drew and hands him one and a half year old Michael. "You need to watch the kids so we can go to the hospital. We want to talk to Hope's doctor and check on Andie."

"Uhm…" Drew takes the Michael from Cooper. "But Ruby and I had plans for this evening."

"Change 'em." Charlotte tells Drew. "You're babysittin' now."

"It's okay." Ruby tells Drew. "I'll tell my father we can't make it and I'll help ya baby-sit."

"Thank you." Charlotte grabs her purse before hurrying out the door with Cooper.

"G'day." Ruby takes Michael Nikolas from Drew. She takes a sniff of the air. "Phew! This little one needs his nappy changed. Who wants to do it?" Ruby asks Drew and Harper.

"Not me!" Harper pinches her nose closed.

"Not me." Drew follows suit.

"I've never changed a baby's nappy in my life." Ruby tells them.

"It's easy." Harper tells her. "Just take the stinky one off, wipe him and put a new one on and do it quick because he smells rotten."

"I'm not going to spit the dummy over this, I'll just do it. Get me a nappy and wipes." Ruby tells Harper.

"We call them diapers, not nappys." Harper sets off to the nursery to retrieve the items.

"I promise I'll make this up to you." Drew pinches his nose closed. "I can't do dirty diapers. I gag and barf."

"You are so going to make this up to me later." Ruby grins at him.

* * *

Chase has a window seat on his flight home from Aruba with Michelle. Michelle taps his arm. "So, do you want a boy or a girl first, daddy?"

"I just want you to be pregnant."

"There is no way I cannot be pregnant after all that wonderul sex we just had. I'm sore from doing it so many times in two days."

"Sorry." Chase smirks, he looks out the windows at the clouds. "I don't care if it's a boy or a girl, as long as it's healthy."

"Speaking of healthy babies, I wonder how Hope did with her surgery?"

Chase sighs before telling Michelle. "I didn't want to say anything until we got home but I spoke to my momma before we boarded the plane."

"Is everything okay?"

"Andie had a seizure after they took Hope into surgery."

Michelle shakes her head. "Poor, Nicky, his baby's having major heart surgery and his wife has a seizure at the same time? He has to worry about her now too."

"At least he made it home for the surgery." Chase inhales. "Hopefully all of our kids will be healthy. We can have all boys or all girls that doesn't matter to me. I just want happy, healthy children."

"Weren't Andie and Nicky trying for another girl this time?" Michelle asks. "That's why she got pregnant again, right?"

Chase warns. "Be careful what you wish for...-"

Michelle finishes his sentence. "Because you just might get it. My mother used to say that to me all the time when I was little. I never really understood what it meant."

Chase explains. "It means if you wish hard for something it may come true but not in the way you hoped, like Andie wishing for a girl and getting one but the girl not being healthy."

Michelle playfully hits his arm. "I know what it means now, silly, I didn't understand it when I was a kid."

"Did you ever wish for anything and then regret it?" Chase asks.

Michelle thinks. "I suppose it happens to all of us at some point. We can't always get what we want the way we want it."

Chase sighs. "I just want to be a dad. That's all I want."

Michelle looks out the window now. She clenches her teeth as tears fill her eyes because she knows the one thing he doesn't he already is someone's dad.

Chase notices. "Andie and Hope will be okay." He squeezes her knee to reassure her. "I love how much you care about my family."

Michelle gulps. She does love his family but that's not what brought the tears to her eyes. "Hopefully it all works out and there are no complications from the surgery." She covers up for what's really troubling her.

"I wonder how Nicky's handling it?" Chase asks.

Michelle turns to face him. "Nicky's strong. He's a great dad just like you're going to be."

"I can't wait. I've been dreaming of it my whole life. I know that doesn't sound cool for a guy to say, but I'm only telling this to you."

"I want to make your dreams come true." She squeezes his hand while looking out the window.

"That's what I love about you." Chase squeezes her hand back. "Because you care enough about my dreams and want to have a baby with me before I turn thirty, not like Tess who wanted to wait another ten years until our careers were well established."

Michelle's starts to cough. She doesn't want to think about Tess, it makes her feel guilty and she's tired of feeling guilty about it. She can't help but wonder if Tess had a boy or a girl and if the baby is healthy. She takes a deep breath and exhales. She needs to stop this, she needs to stop thinking about Tess and her baby.

"What's wrong?" Chase notices her change in demeanor.

"I'm okay." She answers softly, looking down towards the floor.

"I'm sorry I brought up Tess again. This was our trip, I shouldn't have mentioned her name. I'll try not to do it again."

Michelle nods her head slowly, deep in thought, if Chase knew what she was really worried about he'd hate her.

* * *

BJ and Tess jog around the path at the park. Tess pushes Chase's firstborn child, Brayden, in his stroller. A tall muscular guy in his twenties jogs past them. He smiles at Tess. "Hey." He lifts his hand to give a wave.

"Hey there." She smiles, before turning to watch him jog by.

"Do you know that guy?" BJ asks, still jogging alongside her.

"No, he seems friendly." Truth is he reminds her of someone she loves, with his tall build, dark hair, and handsome face.

"You're in Georgia, Tess, everyone waves and says hi to each other."

"I know, but he reminds me of someone I used to know."

"Chase?" BJ guesses.

"How'd you know?"

"By the way you smiled at him, the way you said 'hey'."

Tess scrunches up her face. "What are you talking about? I smiled and said hey like I always do."

"No you didn't, you made goo-goo eyes at him and looked at him like he was a God or something." BJ chuckles.

"Hey!" Tess playfully smacks BJ in the arm as they jog. "I did not."

"Yes, you did." BJ smacks Tess this time, but playfully and on the bottom.

"Hey!" She goes to smack his arm again but he runs ahead of her and fast.

He turns around, jogging backwards. "You have to catch me first!"

"You're in big trouble when I catch you, mister BJ." She laughs running to catch up with him with Brayden giggling in his jogging stroller. A game of chase is fun at any age.

* * *

Nicky stands outside the doorway of the pediatric intensive care unit.

"Okay." Jolie briefs him. "There's going to be a lot of tubes and bandages."

"I know." Nicky nods.

"You think you know, but it's hard to see an infant lying in a big bed covered with bandages and tubes." Jolie warns.

"I can do this." Nicky swallows.

They walk in the room together. Nicky see's a small figure that seems to be swallowed up in the icu bed. He gazes at the top of her dark small head. She has a tube coming out of her mouth hooked up to a ventilator. Her little chest is covered by a huge white bulky bandage, it rises and falls in an even rhythm with the vent. She has a central line IV coming out of her chest and another IV in her arm. Her mouth is swollen and red from the cleft lip repair. Her eyes are shut. There's a blood transfusion dripping into one of her IV's while medications and fluids drip into the central line. He can barely recognize his infant daughter except for her headful of dark hair. Jolie stands by his side

Nicky sits down at the right side of her bed, careful so he doesn't snag any of the tubes delivering her the much need blood and fluid transfusions. There are monitor wires everywhere. He grabs onto her tiny hand and kisses it. "I'm sorry, baby." He sighs and realizes his voice is shaky. He feels the tears come to his eyes again. Some father he is. He uses his free hand to wipe his eyes and feels Jolie's hand on his shoulder to offer support.

Charlotte walks in the room now followed by Cooper. They too seem shocked by the sight of their infant granddaughter. Yes, they are both doctor's and have seen babies in even worse shape but it's different when it's your own baby. It's gut wrenching. Charlotte gulps before turning to Jolie. "How is she?"

"She's heavily sedated. The cleft lip repair went well. There was a complication with her heart but they were able to get her back and complete the operation, now it's just a wait and see."

Charlotte picks up the baby's tiny hand and kisses it. Cooper stares at his granddaughter with tears in his eyes.

"I'm going to find Dr. Baines to see what went on in the surgery." Charlotte tells Nicky. "Call if you need anything."

Cooper sighs. "Is Andie awake yet?"

"No." Nicky shakes his head. "It's better she doesn't see Hope like this anyway. It'll just upset her."

A nurse calls Nicky. "Mr. Poulos. They called from your wife's room. She's just woke up and is asking for you."

Nicky nods, looking at Cooper.

"It's okay, you go. I'll sit here with Hope Charlotte." Cooper takes Nicky's chair and sits vigil at the infant's bedside.

* * *

_**Review please. I want to hear ya'll like and don't like. =)**_


	35. Chapter 35

_**CHAPTER 35**_

* * *

Nicky pushes Andie in a wheelchair through the doors of the pediatric intensive care unit. Andie can walk just fine the morning after her seizure and Hope's major surgery but Nicky's afraid of her reaction to seeing her four month old infant looking the way she does. Charlotte and Cooper are sitting at the infant's side. Nicky slowly wheels Andie into the room

She looks over at the crib. All she can see from her wheelchair is Hope's dark hair amongst all the tubes and hospital equipment surrounding the ICU crib."How's she doing?" Andie asks her parents.

Cooper looks over at his daughter with a silent nod before answering, "she made it through the night, that's a good sign."

Andie's eyes bug open. "Was there any question that she was going to make it through the night?" The amount of anxiety she's feeling right now does not escape anyone in the room. "Did something happen last night?"

"No, Sweet Pea." Charlotte attempts to calm the worry. "Heart surgery is always considered major, in any heart surgery they'll tell you if the patient makes it through the first twenty four hours it's a good sign they'll fully recover."

"But it hasn't been twenty four hours yet." Andie talks fast looking at the clock on the wall. "What time did you say she got out of surgery yesterday, Nick?"

"Uhhh." Nicky thinks. "Somewhere around three pm, I guess."

"So that's." Andie calculates in her head. "So, it's nineteen hours since she got out of surgery. It's hasn't been twenty-four hours yet."

"It's close enough, Belle."

"But they must say twenty-four hours for a reason, right, momma? They don't say if you make it nineteen hours you'll be okay. They say twenty-four hours."

"Relax, Sweet Pea, Hope is doin' just fine." Charlotte pushes Andie's wheelchair close to the ICU crib so Andie can get a better look at her baby.

Andie gazes at the baby with all the tubes. "Oh my God." Andie barely recognizes her baby. Hope's lips are bruised and swollen four times their normal size. She's asleep with tubes coming out of everywhere.

"Her mouth's not going to stay like that, right?" Andie asks. "It's going to look better than that, right?"

"Aha." Charlotte nods. "Her mouth in inflamed from the surgery, once the swelling has gone down and she has the sutures removed it'll start looking better."

"Good." Andie swallows. "Cuz Jolie told us we would hardly be able to see a scar."

"Give it time, Sweet Pea, it hasn't even been twenty four hours since her surgery."

"Oh God." Andie thinks out loud. "If her mouth is that swollen and red from the surgery imagine what her heart must look like."

Cooper adds. "That's why they say if you make it through the first twenty-four hours after heart surgery it's a good sign."

Charlotte walks over to Cooper's side now. "You're not helpin'." Charlotte shoots Cooper a look. "Say it after the twenty-four hour period has passed."

"Gotcha, Chief." Cooper nods.

Andie watches her baby sleep. "Why is she so still? She's not moving at all, not even her foot when I touch it."

"She's heavily sedated." Charlotte explains. "She needs to be or she'd be fightin' that tube and she'd rip open her sutures. We need to keep her as still as possible."

"For how long?" Nicky asks this time.

"Until she's ready to be taken off the ventilator." Charlotte answers. "Then we'll need to restrain her hands. You know babies, their hands go right in their little mouths. We can't have her messin' with her sutures."

"We have to restrain her?" Andie sighs. "Good grief, when will the torture end for my baby?"

"She just has to be restrained until Jolie can take out the sutures in her mouth."

"How long will that be?" Nicky asks.

Charlotte shrugs. "About two weeks give or take a day."

"When will they take her off the ventilator?" Nicky asks.

"They'll see if she's ready to come off it tomorrow mornin' if not tomorrow then Thursday mornin'." Charlotte responds.

Andie looks up from her wheelchair at Nicky. "You're not still leaving Thursday morning? Are you?"

"I have to, Belle, I signed a contact."

"Screw the contract!" Andie raises her voice. "This is your baby!"

"She's doing okay, Andie." Nicky answers. "We agreed to this. I would leave Thursday mornings and come home Sunday nights."

"But you told me the doctor said there was a complication in surgery, we won't know if she's okay until they remove her from the vent which may not happen until Thursday morning."

"Your momma just said they would try and remove her from the vent tomorrow." Nicky answers.

"And if there's a complication, are you still going to leave?" Andie asks, demandingly.

"It depends on what the complication is, I guess." Nicky moves to the other side of the room to look out the window now.

"So, if she's brain dead, you'll stay?" Andie says, sarcastically. "You might as well leave and go play with your damn band then, you're no good to her if she's brain dead!"

"Enough!" Charlotte pushes Andie's wheelchair outside of Hope's room. "What the hell has gotten into you? Arguin' like that while your child's lying there?"

"Did you hear Nicky, momma? He still plans on leaving on Thursday."

"That's not my business but _you're_ not too old to get your tail torn apart for yellin' at him in that baby's hospital room."

"Sorry, momma."

"Hope may not be old enough to understand what y'all are sayin' but she knows her momma and daddy are fixin' to brawl."

"It won't happen again."

"C'mon, I'll wheel you outside for some fresh air." Charlotte pushes Andie's wheelchair down the hall.

* * *

Chase enters the kitchen at the practice. "What'd you bring me for lunch today?" He gives Michelle a quick kiss on the lips before sitting down next to her.

"I went out and got fried chicken. I have a craving for it."

"Isn't it a little early for cravings? We won't know if you're pregnant for at least another week."

"Oh, I know you got me pregnant." She smiles.

"I think so too. I got a few good shots in each time I pulled the trigger." He chuckles.

Michelle waves a piece of chicken in her hand. "And that's why I'm craving fried chicken and mashed potatoes with gravy today."

"Mmm…" Chase bites into a drumstick. "I hope that doesn't mean our kid will come out looking like a chicken."

"Stop picking on a baby that isn't even born yet to defend itself." Michelle teases.

Chase takes another bite of chicken. "Seriously, I wonder who the baby will look like. In my family Noah and Drew look like my momma, Andie looks like a mix of both my parents and I look just like my dad, I wonder who this baby will look like?"

"We'll have to wait and see." Michelle thinks about Tess and Chase's baby. It must be about seven or eight months old by now. She wonders if it looks like Chase.

"A quarter for your thoughts." Chase notices Michelle staring into space in deep thought.

"Just imagining what our baby will look like." She responds, still staring out the window into the hall.

"If it looks anything like you, the kid will be lucky." Chase looks out the kitchen of the window now too. He sees Lila walk by, she's about eight months pregnant, she concieved the day of their wedding. "What's she doing here?" He asks Michelle.

"She has an appointment with Addison."

"Why?"

"I heard she has placenta previa so Violet felt better having Addison as her doctor."

Chase nods. "That was nice of Addison to come out of retirement to do that for her."

"Well, Addison likes to keep her feet wet. She says it keeps her mind sharp. You know they say your mind goes to mush when you retire." Michelle watches Lila from the kitchen window.

"We should ask Addison to deliver our baby." Chase suggests.

"Yeah." Michelle nods before asking Chase. "Doesn't it bother you to see Lila here?"

"Why should it?" Chase bites into his chicken.

"I would be eight months pregnant now too if I didn't miscarry."

"It might have bothered me before but now that I know I got you pregnant in Aruba last weekend I'm okay with it."

"Me too." Michelle takes a sip of her ice tea.

* * *

Tess wakes up and looks around. It takes her a few minutes to acclimate herself to the unfamiliar bedroom. BJ walks in the room. "Good Morning, sleepy head. You finally decided to wake up."

"Where's Brayden?" She stretches her arm behind her head.

"He's asleep in his stroller. I fed him breakfast, played with him, gave him a snack and now he's taking his nap."

"What time is it?"

"It's twelve noon." BJ smirks.

Tess stretches. "I never sleep until noon."

"That's because you always have to get up to take care of Brayden, today I did it so you could sleep."

"Thank you." She pulls the sheet up to cover herself.

"I need to go out and buy Brayden a portable crib if you're going to make a habit of sleeping over. He's getting big, he can't roll around well in the stroller."

"Don't buy anything…-" Tess starts to say before she notices BJ's smile change to a frown. She finishes, "_b__ecause_ my grandmother already bought me one. I never use it so I'll leave it here."

"Oh,okay." BJ breathes a sigh of relief. "For a minute there I thought you were going to say don't bother to buy one because I'm never sleeping with you again. I thought how could I have been that bad?" He makes a goofy face. "You almost blew all the self-confidence I notched onto my belt after having sex with a beautiful woman like you last night."

Tess smiles the comment. "Flattery will get you everywhere." She teases.

Tess stands up, pulling the sheet along with her to cover up her naked body. "You were great, we were great." She tells him.

"You're telling me the truth?" Did you really think I was great?" He smiles, hopeful that she says yes.

She holds up her right hand. "I solumnley swear that you were great last night."

"Well then, Brayden just fell asleep for his nap." He tells her. "You wanna do it again?"

She hesitates a few seconds. "Uh...I guess." She shrugs and thinks it sounded bad so she drops her sheet while pulling him close. She kisses him to make up for the comment. He lifts her up and carries her back to the bed. She lies there, waiting for him to undress himself. He's the only guy she's had sex with besides Chase. She's going to try hard not to compare them. Truth be told the sex with BJ last night was good but it was just sex, no emotional component. He's a friend and now he's a friend with benefits. He sits on the bed next to her. She closes her eyes and wraps her arms around him trying her best not to think about how he's not Chase.

* * *

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	36. Chapter 36

_**CHAPTER 36**_

* * *

It's exactly 7:00 am Thursday morning, Andie and Nicky wait outside Hope's hospital room. Nicky's looking at his watch. "What do you think is taking so long? I have to be at the airport in one hour to check in for my flight."

Andie answers, sarcastically, "They should just rip that breathing tube out of Hope's lungs because you have a flight to catch, those moron doctors." The truth is Andie and Nicky have barely spoke to each other the past few days since Nicky told her he was still flying back to New York to meet his band.

Nicky glares at Andie. "You need to stop. Your damn attitude is getting old fast."

Jolie exits Hope's room to tell them, "Everything went well. We were able to remove the tube without a problem. Your parents were right there with her, I think that helped."

"Can we see her now?" Andie asks.

"Sure." Jolie escorts Andie and Nicky into Hope's room. The baby's lying in the crib wide awake. She looks much better without the breathing tube. She has only one IV left but there are plastic brace like devices on her arms that look like casts. Jolie explains, "She needs to keep the elbow restraints on her arms until I can remove the sutures from her mouth."

"How long?" Nicky asks.

"About ten more days." Jolie tells them. "You don't want her pulling out her sutures if you don't want her to end up with a scar. If she keeps the restraints on for another ten days her lip and mouth should heal beautifully."

"Okay." Nicky nods.

"Why do you care?" Andie snaps at him. "You're not even going to be home."

"It's Thursday, I'll be back Sunday night. It's three fuckin' days that I'll be gone."

Everyone's eyes are on Nicky now. "Sorry," He says looking at Jolie and Charlotte.

Jolie continues. "We'll continue to feed Hope with the g-tube until I remove the stitches but you can give her watered down apple juice by mouth to satisfy her need to suck. After the sutures are out, she can go back to formula by mouth and when she gains enough weight we'll pull the gastrostomy tube out."

"Yay, Hopie." Andie tells the baby. "No more tube in your tummy soon."

Nicky leans over the crib to give Hope a kiss. "Poppa loves you, peanut. I'll see you Sunday." He hugs Charlotte goodbye before he shakes hands with Cooper and Jolie. He walks up to Andie to kiss her goodbye but she quickly turns her face so he ends up brushing her on the cheek with his lips.

Nicky shakes his head at her before leaving the room. "Unbelievable." He groans as he leaves.

"Break a leg!" Cooper calls out after him to lighten the moment and wish him luck on his tour. Andie shoots her father a disapproving look.

* * *

Tess and BJ do their warm up exercises at the park before their morning jog. "This is nice." BJ says as he stretches out his hamstring.

"What's nice?" Tess sits on the ground stretching out her legs to grab her toes.

"Us, we're nice." BJ shrugs. "You've stayed over my place three nights in a row. We jog together everyday. It's nice."

"It is." Tess agrees. "It's nice to have a friend you get along with so well and can tell anything to."

"So, are we girlfriend-boyfriend?" BJ waits for the answer.

Tess thinks before stretching out her upper arm mucsle. "More like friends with benefits."

"Oh." The disappointment pours off of BJ's face.

"I'm not ready for a boyfriend." Tess tells him.

"Because you're not over Chase?"

"I wanna be, I really do but whenever I see Brayden smile, it's like I'm looking at Chase smile. Whenever Brayden makes his little pouty face I think of Chase and his grumpy face. I'm not ready for a relationship yet but friends with benefits works out great for both of us." Tess goes on. "We each get a good friend, not to mention good sex."

BJ stretches."You should think about the time Chase cheated on you with that bimbo he married. That'll help you get over him."

"When I think about that I want to shoot them both." Tess smirks.

"You should talk to a therapist to see why you're still in love with a guy who cheated on you and married the chick he did it with."

"I don't need a shrink." Tess rises up to her feet and starts to jog in place.

"Sounds like you don't want to get over Chase." BJ sounds sort of like he's acussin'.

"Ya wanna be friends with benefits or not?" Tess looks him in the eye. It sounds like an ultimatum.

"Friend with benefits." He agrees before they start off on their run.

The dark haired muscular guy with the blue eyes runs by them. "Mornin'.'' He smiles as he passes them.

"Mornin'." Tess smiles back.

* * *

Andie sits next to Hope Charlotte while the baby rests in her crib in the pediatric intensive care unit. She's getting bored watching some cooking show when a breaking news bulletin cuts in to interrupt. A newscaster comes on to announce. "We have breaking news. US Jetaway's flight 383 has crashed after taking off from Chicago's O'Hare airport en route to New York City's JFK International Airport. The pilot reported engine trouble shortly after take off and was attempting to return to the airport. Witnesses reported a huge explosion on impact. There are no reported survivors."

Andie gulps, her heart sinks into her stomach. She knows Nicky is flying on US Jetaways this morning. She remembers his plane was delayed Sunday when he had to switch planes in Chicago. He had a round trip ticket which means he would have to switch planes again today at Chicago's O'Hare airport. She calculates in her head if his flight was to leave LA at nine, it would have arrived in Chicago about two hours ago, enough time for Nicky to board the plane from O'Hare to Kennedy with a safety buffer to get to his concert. She starts to tremble and picks up the phone.

Charlotte's in her office completing paperwork.

"Momma." Andie yells into the phone. "I need you in Hopes's room NOW! It's an emergency!"

"On my way!" Charlotte drops her pen on her desk. It takes her exactly four minutes to make it from her office on the first floor to Hopes's hospital room on the third floor. Charlotte runs into the room. The first thing she notices is Hope asleep in her crib. The monitors are all functioning properly. She looks at her sobbing daughter. "What is it?" She rushes over to her.

Andie points to the breaking news report on television which is still covering the plane crash. "I think Nicky was on that plane. Nicky's dead." She clutches onto her momma, sobbing.

"Was that his flight number?" Charlotte looks up at the television. "Are you sure he was on US Jetaways 383?"

"I didn't ask him his flight number. I was mad at him but I know he was switching planes in Chicago and the times work that he could be on that plane. He was supposed to leave LA around 9:00 which means he would be in Chicago by now and have enough time to catch that plane."

"Did you call the airline to ask if he was on that flight?"

"I'm too scared, can you call momma?"

"Okay, you call his momma or Cody or someone who might know his flight number." Charlotte takes out her phone to call the airport.

Andie tries calling Nicky's mother but gets her voicemail. She decides not to leave a message about the plane crash. She calls Cody next.

"What can I do for ya, my fair lady?" Cody recognizes Andie's number.

"Do you know Nicky's flight number?" Andie's voice is trembling.

"No, why?"

"US Jetaways flight 383 from O'Hare to Kennedy just crashed. I think Nicky was on that plane."

"Holy crap!" Cody exclaims.

"Do you know if he was on that flight?" Andie asks. Her voice is full of fear.

"The flight number sounds right. He was supposed to switch planes in Chicago and arrive at Kennedy around three pm. I'm supposed to pick him up at the airport. We have a show tonight at eight…-"

"Oh, shit. That's not the answer I wanted to hear, Cody."

Cody reports, "I talked to him this morning. He told me he was going to try to switch another flight out of LA that flies directly to Kennedy so he wouldn't have to switch in Chicago. The last time he was delayed for two hours in Chicago."

"I know. He didn't get home until really late. Sunday night. I was waiting for him to come home to take Hope to the hospital."

"Yeah." Cody agrees. "He was afraid the plane would be delayed and he wouldn't have enough time to get ready for the concert so he wanted to get on the direct flight that left fifteen minutes earlier. He didn't know if he was going to be able to make it. He was waiting for them to pull a tube out of Hope's mouth. He wasn't sure if there would be any standby tickets left by the time he got to the airport."

"He never called you back to tell you if he made it on the earlier flight?'

"No, he didn't but he might not have had time before he boarded the plane."

"If you hear from him, please call me Cody."

"Same here." Cody and Andie both hang up.

Andie looks at Charlotte who has tears in her eyes. "What did the airline say, momma?"

"Nicky's name was on the flight list for 383 but the woman at the desk said several people switched over to the direct flight that left fifteen minutes earlier. They don't have an acurrate list of the names yet of the passengers who made the switch."

Andie paces around the room. "Cody said Nicky wanted to switch to the direct flight. He was worried about getting delayed in Chicago again." Andie looks up at the ceiling and prays after she tells Charlotte.

"Does Cody know if he made the switch?" Charlotte asks

"Cody said it depended if there were any standby seats left by the time he got to the airport."

Charlotte informs, "the direct flight was full when it left maybe he made it on the direct flight."

"Do you think so, momma?" Andie asks, desperately. "Do you think he got one of those standby seats?"

"I hope." Now Charlotte feels like she's trembling inside, herself.

"If he didn't it's my fault, momma. He would've left earlier if I didn't make him feel guilty for wanting to leave Hope. I made him wait until they pulled the tube out."

"You can't blame yourself, Sweet Pea." Charlotte hugs Andie. "You had no idea there would be a plane crash."

"I'm going to be sick, momma." Andie rushes to the bathroom. Charlotte follows her.

* * *

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	37. Chapter 37

_**CHAPTER 37**_

* * *

Charlotte gives Andie a valium to calm her down. She's been hysterical for hours since the airline won't confirm Nicky switched to the direct flight. She's been alternating between sobbing, shaking and vomiting for the past two hours.

Cooper rushes into Hope's room. "How is she?" He asks, referring to his daughter.

"Not good. I had to give her a Valium."

"You gave her a Valium?" Cooper's surprised considering Charlotte's past drug addiction stemmed from a time in her life she couldn't cope.

Charlotte looks up at Cooper with a desperate look on her face. "I didn't know what else to do. She's been cryin' and vomitin' for the past two hours. I'm afraid she'll have another seizure if she's not able to hold down her Tegretol. I gave a her a Valium and a dose of Tegretol."

"That combo should knock her out." Cooper raises his eyebrows.

"At least we won't have to worry about her seizing on top of everything else that's goin' on. She's not doing Hope any good here. I'll stay here with the baby, Coop. You take her home. Hopefully, we'll hear some news about Nicky before she wakes up."

"Okay." Cooper helps a drugged up Andie out of the chair and puts her in a wheelchair he finds in the hall.

"Give her another valium later if you need to." Charlotte watches Cooper wheel a zoned out Andie away. Charlotte sighs and picks up baby Hope, careful of her bandages. "I hope you'll get the chance to know your daddy. He really loved you." Charlotte catches herself talking about Nicky in the past chance. She decides to hold out hope that he made it onto that direct flight. She tries calling his number but his phone is off.

* * *

Cody arrives at JFK, as he walks into the lobby near the US Jetaways gates his phone rings. His eyes light up when he recognizes Nicky's number. "Are you alive?" He answers the phone.

"Is that your new greeting?" Nicky chuckles.

"It is you? Thank God you're alive." Cody talks into the phone. "Where are you?"

"I'm at the gate waiting for you and what the fuck are you saying thank God I'm alive for? Hope had heart surgery, not me."

"There was a plane crash. US Jetaways flight 383 crashed in the air over O'Hare airport after it took off. We thought you were on that plane. I came to get some information but this place is so crowded and chaotic today."

"I'll pick up my luggage and meet you at the doors by the Jetaway airlines gate."

After about ten minutes Nicky appears in front of Cody. Cody hugs him this time. He's never been happier to see his best friend.

"Tell me what happened." Nicky and Cody walk out of the airport to the parking garage.

"Didn't you hear flight 383 crashed? It's all over the news."

"I was on a plane for the past few hours. I doubt they would announce a plane crash to passengers currently in flight." Nicky smirks.

"I guess that wouldn't be a good idea." Cody walks with Nicky to his car.

"Did you say flight 383?"

"Yeah."

"I was supposed to be on that flight. I switched at the last damn minute so I wouldn't have to change planes at O'Hare."

"That's what we were hoping but we didn't know if you were able to make the switch. Andie's hysterical. You better call her."

Nicky swallows. "I'll call her later. She's been a real bitch to me this week, makes me not look forward to going home again Sunday but I have to for the kids."

"What'd she do now?" Cody pulls his keys out of his pocket.

"She wanted me to stay. She was giving me an attitude and a guilt trip for flying back today for the concert. Meanwhile, the day of Hope's surgery she had a fuckin' seizure because she forgot to take her medication. She slept the whole day while I was scared to death the doctor would walk in any minute to tell me Hope didn't make it. I had to go through it alone while she was sleeping peacefully."

"Where was everyone else?" Cody asks.

"Her parents were home taking care of the other three kids. My sister and my parents are in Greece."

"What are they doing in Greece?"

"They're at my cousin's wedding. They planned this trip two years ago. Andie and I were supposed to go but we have the tour going on now and Hope's surgery."

"Your parents still went to Greece when Hope was having heart surgery?"

"I didn't tell my parents Hope's surgery was scheduled while they would be in Greece, I knew they would cancel. My grandparents are old. This may be the last time they get to see them."

"So, you had nobody to support you while Hope was having open heart surgery?"

"Nope. You guys were all in New York, Chase was in Aruba, Noah's away at school and my family's in Greece so I sat there alone. All day long I was scared shit the doctor was going to come in the room to tell me Hope didn't make it while Andie was sound asleep. Now, she has the nerve to be mad at me for leaving to do the tour. At least she has her parents around for support and besides Hope's out of the woods."

"Plus it helps that her parents are both doctors."

"Right." Nicky says as he gets in the car. "She has support but I had no one and she's all pissed at me." Nicky tosses his luggage in the trunk before climbing into the passenger seat.

Cody starts the car. "You're both just stressed. Now that the baby's okay you can chill."

Nicky lights a cigarette. "I could use a cold one."

"Ya wanna stop for a beer on the way home? We have some time before we have to get ready for the concert." Cody suggests.

Nicky nods. "I'm gonna need something to relax me before I get up on stage. I'm fuckin' shaking thinking how close I came to dying today. If I didn't switch to the direct flight I'd be dead right now."

"That's scary shit. I need a drink just thinking about it." Cody drives out of the parking garage. They pass the news media trucks and cameras as they leave the airport parking area.

* * *

Tess takes Brayden for a walk on the park trail this evening. A male voice calls out to her. "How come you're not jogging this time?" She turns around and recognizes the dark haired jogger with the blue eyes who she says hello to every morning on her jog.

"I already went for a jog this morning."

The guy stops to checks his pulse.

"My name's Tess. " She extends her hand to shake.

"Damien." The hot looking dude shakes her hand. "Where's your boyfriend today?"

"Oh, BJ's not my boyfriend, he's just a good friend."

"That's good." Damien smiles.

"Why's that good?" Tess find herself flirting. She flips her hair with her hand.

"It just is." Damien's still smiling. "Is that his kid?"

"No, I told you BJ and I are just friends. Brayden's not his son."

"Where's his father?"

"In LA, we're not together anymore."

"Bummer, for the kid."

"Yeah, it is a bummer for Brayden but it's his fathers choice, not mine."

"Well, that dude must me a loser to pass up a pretty woman like you and a cute kid like Brayden."

"Thank you." Tess feels flattered. Damien bares a striking resemblance to Chase. They're both over six foot tall with dark hair and blue eyes except Damien is muscular. Tess can tell he spends a lot of time working out by his sculpted arms and legs, not that Chase is in bad shape but he doesn't have the time to work out every day.

"Here's my number," Damien show her his phone. "Give me a call sometime if you wanna go out for a drink."

"Sure." Tess nods before typing his number into her phone. "See ya." She smiles as she continues on her walk, pushing Brayden in his stroller.

* * *

Nicky leaves the sports bar with Cody. "Feeling better?" Cody asks.

"I'm feeling fine now, a little food in my stomach and some beer is all I needed."

"Yeah, those sliders rocked. I hope you're not too buzzed. We have to get ready to go on stage soon."

"I'm not buzzed." Nicky shrugs. "I only had two beers, enough to relax me but not enough to buzz me but I plan on getting real buzzed tonight after the show. I deserve it after this week, dude."

"You should call Andie. She was really worried when I talked to her earlier." Cody advises.

"I'm not ready to talk to Andie yet. I'll call her momma." Nicky pushes Charlotte's button on his phone.

"Nicky?" Charlotte answers, her voice full of hope.

"The one and only." He answers.

"Thank God." Charlotte breathes a huge sigh of relief. "We thought you were dead."

"Almost, I switched flights at the last minute so you're stuck with me a little longer."

"Thank God." Charlotte says again. "Andie's in bad shape. I had to give her valium to calm her down."

"How's Hope?"

"She's doing well. I got a smile out of her earlier today."

"That's my girl. Give her a kiss from her daddy."

"You got it."

"How the rest of the kids?"

"They're fine. We didn't let on that we thought you were on the plane that crashed."

"Good. I'm going to call Harper when I hang up."

"Alright. I'll let you go then...-" Charlotte hesitates. "And Nicky?"

"Yes?"

"Cooper and think of you as a son, like your one of our own."

Nicky feels tears come to his eyes. Andie's momma doesn't hand compliments out like that too often.

"Thank you, momma." Nicky answers, feeling it would be appropriate

"Well, break a leg at your concert tonight and don't worry about the kids including Hope. I got it."

"Thanks, momma." Nicky says again before hanging up to call Harper.

* * *

_**REVIEW! =)**_


	38. Chapter 38

_**CHAPTER 38**_

* * *

It's Sunday evening, Andie waits at the airport armed with a bouquet of red roses. She spots Nicky walking out of his gate. She rushes up to him and jumps into his arms. Her arms are around his neck and her legs are wrapped around his waist. "I love you." She says before planting a big wet smooch on his lips. "I'm sorry I was a royal bitch last week."

It's Nicky's turn to kiss her now. He's aware other passengers are staring as they walk by but he doesn't care, he likes to put on a show. "I can't stay mad at you, Belle." He puts her down. They hold hands and walk to the baggage claim area.

"How were your concerts this weekend?" She asks, squeezing his hand tight.

"Amazing, they went unbelievably well, so well that Benn Golder wants to add another show on Wednesdays to sell more tickets but I told him- no."

"Why?"

"I told him I couldn't because my wife's a bitch." Nicky smirks.

"You did not." Andie shoves Nicky, playfully.

"No, I told him I needed time with my family and my band needs time off to practice too."

"Thanks." She smiles. "I'm glad your band is doing so well.'

"This week was incredible" Nicky goes on. "I wish you could have been there to see me. I was on fire."

"Literally on fire or are you just bragging on yourself?" Andie snickers.

"Seriously, I was smokin' it more than usual this weekend. I think it's because of all the stress I've been under - Hope's surgery, us fighting and then the plane crash. It's like I have all these emotions trapped inside that I need to get out and I'm belting them out on stage. Everything I've been feeling is coming through in my songs and it's working out for me. The audience can't get enough."

"I guess I have to keep being a bitch then, so you'll perform better." Andie teases as they wait for Nicky's luggage.

"Nah, I don't want to live with a bitch." Nicky pulls his luggage off the belt. "It could also be the lack of sex. We haven't done the deed in weeks cuz we've been worrying about Hope's surgery, I could be sexually frustrated too.'

"Oh, speaking of that, I have another surprise for you." Andie walks with Nicky out of the airport.

"What?" Nicky pulls his suitcase while he holds his flowers with the other hand.

"My parents booked us a room at The Hyatt tonight, the honeymoon suite."

"Why did they do that?"

"They're happy you're alive and they know we've been fighting lately. They wanted to do something nice for us. My momma's staying at the hospital with Hope tonight and my dad's staying at our house to watch the kids so we can have some quiet time alone at the hotel."

"I love your parents. I talked to your momma, she said Hope's doing good."

"She is. I can't wait until she gets her sutures out then things will be more like normal."

"Hmm..-" Nicky teases. "There goes my incredible performances on stage if everything's going to be normal again."

Andie playfully pushes Nicky. "The only one you should worry about performing for tonight is me."

* * *

Drew opens the door for Ruby. "I like your haircut." She kisses him on the cheek before walking in the door.

"I wanted to try something new." Drew had his blonde hair cut in a surfer dude style. "It'll look better when it grows a little longer but I like this style."

"It suits you." Ruby steps into the living room. "Now we just need to work on your surfing."

"I asked for a new surf board for my birthday. Can you recommend a good board for me?"

"I reckon." Ruby looks around. "Where is everybody?"

"My momma's staying at the hospital tonight with my niece and my dad's spending the night at my sister's house to watch the kids."

"So, you have the place to yourself?"

"Cool, right." Drew nods.

"What shall we do?" Ruby asks.

"I was going to order a pizza and watch the Star Wars marathon before you came over."

"Sounds good to me." Ruby sits on the couch.

"What were you doing tonight?"

"Nothing, that's why I'm here. My dad's in China for a business trip." Ruby shrugs. "I'm on my own this week."

"That is so cool. My parents would never leave me alone for a week." Drew rolls his eyes. "You should have seen my father before he left. He kept asking if I had his number and if I would be okay. I'm like, dad, I've had your number memorized since I was eight and my sister literally lives around the block."

Ruby laughs. "At least your oldies care about you. I think it's nice."

"Don't your parents care about you?"

"I s'pose they do." Ruby puts her feet up on the coffee table.

Drew raises his eyebrows. "You suppose they do?" He questions. "You don't sound so sure."

Ruby explains. "My dad bailed out on me and my mum when I was just an ankle biter. He moved to the U.S. He would visit me in Australia once a year when he visited his oldies."

"What about your mother?'

"My mum and I had a great relationship until I was about ten. That was before she met my step-father. Now her life revolves around him, they married, had a rug-rat of their own and I'm just there. It's hard to explain, I feel like I don't belong in my own family."

Drew screws up his face. "I can't believe that."

"My step-dad was never thrilled that my mum had a child. He basically ignored me when they dated. They would go on his work trips and vacations all the time and leave me home with a sitter."

"That stinks."

Ruby continues, "I figured he was just the type that didn't enjoy being around kids, so it didn't bother me that much at first. I didn't take it personal."

"I hear a _BUT _coming." Drew waits and listens.

Ruby shrugs. "But when my sister was born, it was different. He makes the biggest fuss over everything she does and my mum goes along with it."

"How do you mean?" Drew asks.

"My step-dad will say stuff like 'isn't she the most beautiful girl in the world' and my mum will agree and my step-dad will go on about how my sister it the smartest kid he's ever seen and my mum will agree. I can understand my step-dad doing it."

Drew nods. "Because your sister is his own child?"

"Yes but it bothers me that my mum goes along with it. I mean doesn't she know I have feelings?"

"Did you ever talk to your mum about it."

"Yes. I was told that jealousy isn't very becoming."

Drew just sits there. He doesn't know what to say.

"I'm not jealous of my sister, Drew. I just feel like now that she's here my mum doesn't want me anymore. I feel like a nuisance."

"I'm sure your mother loves you." Drew insists. "She's your mother."

"You'd never know it since my sister was born. They both adore her and I'm ignored like I don't matter. That's why I decided to move to the states and live with my dad."

"And are you happier with your dad?"

"It's going dandy. My dad lives a bachelor's life, he has for years. He's not used to having a kid in the house but I'm fourteen, I can look after myself. My dad supports me financially but he's not around a lot. He doesn't check my homework or get involved in my school stuff but it's fine." Ruby shrugs. "It's dandy with me this way."

Drew hears what she's saying but he doesn't believe her when she says she's dandy living this way. "You can stay here if you want, we have plenty of room."

Ruby chuckles. "I'm sure that's exactly what your oldies want, another kid in the house. Their baskets are overflowing already with your sister's kids."

"Yeah, my sister leans on my parents a lot."

"She's lucky. I don't know what I would do if I was her, I wouldn't have anyone to lean on."

"You can lean on me." Drew tells her.

"Thank you." Ruby smiles. "Shall we order that pizza now?"

* * *

Tess places Brayden in the highchair to eat. "Great-grandma's in LA visiting grammy and BJ's working late so it's just me and you for dinner, Bray-Bud."

"Ma-ma, Ma-ma." Brayden kicks his feet excitedly when Tess sits down with her dinner plate full of pasta.

"You are just like your daddy. He loved to eat." Tess laughs at herself. "I should say loves to eat, it's not like he's dead or anything although he might as well be since he doesn't want to know you." Tess is aware she shouldn't be talking to Brayden about his father this way but since he's only eight months old he has no idea what she's saying so she goes for it. "Who knows maybe that witch changed him and he lost his passion for food."

"Ma-ma, Ma-ma." Braydens shakes his hands anxious to try some of her pasta.

"Here ya go, hungry boy." Tess spoons some pasta onto the highchair tray before warming up some strained broccoli.

Brayden carefully pinches the pasta between his little fingers to pick it up and put it in his mouth. "Num-Num." He babbles as he eats.

Tess can't help but smile. "You're a little butter licker, aren't you?" She sticks a spoon into the jar of strained broccoli and feeds it to Brayden.

Brayden eagerly opens his mouth and lets her spoon it in. He makes a scowl face before blowing the broccoli back out of his mouth. "You don't like broccoli either, your dad always hated broccoli." Tess tries to offer Brayden another spoonful but he shuts his mouth tight so she can't get the spoon in. "Okay, I'll eat the broccoli then." Tess opens a jar of bananas. Brayden watches her. She spoons some in his mouth.

"Num-num-num." Brayden babbles while he waits for his momma to spoon more bananas into his mouth.

"You are definitely your daddy's son, he has a sweet tooth too." Tess feels bad that Chase is missing out on this. She can't understand how her Chase could have changed so much to put a hussy in front of his child. Maybe it's because it's only been the two of them since they were sixteen. Maybe he wanted to see what it was like to have sex with someone else before he married her, then he had sex with that hot hussie nurse, Michelle, with her super model good looks and he was hooked. Tess sighs and remembers walking in on Chase screwing the super model nurse, Michelle, on his desk. She remembers watching him dance with Michelle at a party the night before. He seemed smitten with her. Her Chase was gone after he got a taste of Michelle. Her phone rings.

"Hello." Tess answers while feeding Brayden his bananas.

"This is Damien, the jogger from the park."

"Yes, I know who you are. What's going on?"

"I wanted to see if you could meet me for dinner tonight."

Tess sighs. "I'm already eating dinner. I can meet you tomorrow if it's okay."

"I'm leaving tomorrow on a business trip but we can go out to dinner when I get back next week."

"I'd like that, sorry about tonight but I have the baby too, next week my grandmother will be

back from LA to babysit."

"I'll give you a call when I'm back in Atlanta."

"It's a date." Tess hangs up. A minute later her phone rings again. Tess answers. "Hey, BJ! How's my fucking friend doing today?" Tess chuckes.

"Is that what we're called?" BJ laughs.

"We're friends and we...-"

BJ interrupts. "I like the term friends with benefits better."

"You're such a gentlemen, that's why I like you."

"I just left work and wanted to see if you were coming over tonight."

"My grandmother is out of town. Can you come here instead?"

"Yeah, I just have to go home and shower first."

"Great, that gives me enough time to give Brayden a bath and put him to bed so we can have some adult playtime"

"I'll bring the wine."

"See you soon." Tess hangs up. She looks at Brayden. "It 's about time momma had some fun. I've only been with your daddy up until now. Daddy's in love with his bimbo wife now so momma has to find a new love."

"Ma-ma, ma-ma!" Brayden reaches for the spoon.

"BJ's a really nice guy. He reminds me of your daddy before he went and cheated on me but I'm not going for that type again because your dad ended up screwing me and you over too." Tess feeds Brayden more mashed bananas.

"Mom-mom-ma." Brayden babbles back to his momma while she babbles on to him.

"So, we should keep BJ around as a friend because he's a nice guy and he's really good with you."

"Goo-ga-ga." Brayden sucks on the spoon.

"But I think it would be fun to date Damien. He actually looks like your daddy. He's very handsome like you. If we could only mix BJ' s personality with Damien's good looks we'd have a clone of your dad, the way he was before he cheated on me. Now, that would be the perfect man for us, Brayden. God, I miss your dad so much. I don't know what the hell happened to him. He pretty much changed over night after he met Miss Bimbo Michelle."

"Na-na-no." Brayden throws his spoon on the floor. " Da-do-da-do-du-du."

"You sure like to talk, you must get that from your daddy too." Michelle bends over to pick up the spoon.

Brayden reaches for it. "Shoo-boo-boo-doo."

"We're not playing that game, Bray- bud. I know BJ will play drop and pick up for an hour with you but your momma hasn't got the patience."

"Ya-da-ya-da!" Brayden laughs and smears his mashed bananas on the high chair tray.

"Alright, dinner time's over, time for your bath, bottle, a book and bed." Tess picks Brayden up and out of the high chair. "And then momma's gonna have some fun of her own."

* * *

_**REVIEW**_


	39. Chapter 39

_**CHAPTER 39**_

* * *

_One Week Later-_

It's a Sunday evening again, Charlotte and Cooper are staying with Hope at the hospital tonight while Andie picks up Nicky from the airport. Nicky's parents are at their house watching Harper and the boys after returning from Greece. Cooper saunters in the room holding a box.

"What have you got there?" Charlotte reads the newspaper in a chair besides Hope's crib.

"Today's Hope's five month birthday." Cooper smiles at the dark haired baby girl while he hands her a purple stuffed pony. The baby grabs it and puts it to her mouth to suck on the ear.

"Is that okay?" He asks Charlotte. "Why doesn't she have her elbow restraints on?'

"Jolie just took all the sutures out of her mouth and lip so she doesn't need restraints anymore."

Cooper picks up the baby to look. "Jolie did a nice job, once it's completely healed I don't think we'll see much of a scar."

Charlotte looks at her granddaughter. "She looks a lot like Nicky but now that she had her lip repaired I can see you and Chase in her too."

Cooper chuckles." It's about time I have a grandchild that looks like me."

"I didn't say Hope looks like you, I still think she looks like Nicky but I can see you and Chase in her cheeks and mouth area."

"I'll take it." Cooper picks up a bottle to feed Hope. "How are the feedings going now that she has the stitches out?"

"I tried to feed her before but she wasn't interested, you can try."

Cooper sits down in the chair next to Charlotte and begins to feed the baby. The baby puts her hands on the bottle. "Do you want to hold it?" Cooper asks Hope.

Hope stares up at her grandpa Cooper with big blue eyes, sucking on her bottle.

Cooper lets go of the bottle. "Look, Chief, Hope is holding her own bottle."

Charlotte talks to Hope. "What a big girl you are now."

Cooper studies the baby. "Her color looks much better."

"I hope so Cooper. She just had major heart surgery two weeks ago to fix the problem."

Cooper sighs. "That means no more oxygen tanks in the house."

"It'll definitely be easier. All she needs is to have the feeding tube removed from her stomach and she'll be just like any other baby."

"When is Jolie going to take the feeding tube out?" Cooper helps Hope hold her bottle now.

"She wants to make sure she's taking enough by mouth before she pulls the tube. She wants her to gain a few more pounds."

"You can do it." Cooper cheers baby Hope on. "Grandpa will fatten you up so you can get that tube out."

* * *

Drew's eating tacos with Ruby. "Do you want to go surfing after we're done eating?" Drew asks.

"I don't have my wet suit with me." Ruby munches on a crunchy taco.

Chase and Michelle walk in the house. "Anyone home?" Chase calls out.

"In the kitchen!" Drew call back.

Chase and Michelle stroll into the kitchen. "Where are momma and dad?"

"At the hospital with Hope. Where else?" Drew shrugs.

"Where's Andie?"

"Picking up Nicky from the airport then they're going to surprise him, his parents are home from Greece."

"Oh." Chase looks in the fridge for something to eat.

"Who's your friend?" Michelle asks Drew about Ruby.

Drew puts his taco down. "Sorry, this is my girlfriend, Ruby. Ruby this is my brother Chase and his wife Michelle."

"How ya' goin'?" Ruby greets.

"You have a lovely accent." Michelle comments. "Is it British?"

"No. I'm moved here from Australia a few months back to live with my dad."

"Welcome." Chase smiles and pours himself some chocolate milk. "Want some?" He asks Michelle.

"No thanks."

"But it's good for you and …-"

Michelle shoots him a look. They 're both positive she got pregnant last week in Aruba but they have to wait another week to do a home pregnancy test. She doesn't want to let the cat out of the bag yet.

Chase catches onto the look. "And your bones. Women need to be careful about osteoporosis."

"When they're sixty." Michelle chuckles. "I'm twenty -five."

Chase looks at fourteen year old Ruby. "Twenty-five sounds so old. Doesn't it?"

Michelle tells Ruby. "Don't listen to him. Chase is even older than me. He's sensitive about his age."

Drew chuckles. "Yeah, his time clock is ticking. You better pop him out a baby soon." Fourteen year old Drew has no idea how insensitive what he just said would be to Michelle if she wasn't so confident she got pregnant in Aruba.

"You don't look old." Ruby tells Michelle. "You're beautiful."

"Well, thank you. I think you're beautiful too."

Ruby looks around the room. "Are you talking about me?"

"Yes. I wouldn't call Drew beautiful. He's a handsome young man but not beautiful."

"Hey!" Drew complains.

"Hey what, Doofus?" Chase teases Drew. "You wanna throw some baskets with me in the driveway?"

"Do you mind if I shoot hoops with my brother for a little while?" Drew asks Ruby.

"Hoo-roo, go play with your brother. I want to finish my nachos anyway." Ruby waves Drew away.

Michelle sits at the table next to Ruby. "Do you mind if I share some nachos? I'm starving. Chase and I thought we were stopping over for dinner but I guess his parents got busy with Andie and forgot that they invited us last week to dinner tonight."

"Ba, ha, ha. They invited you over for dinner tonight and then forgot about you?" Ruby laughs.

"It looks that way." Michelle looks around. "They're not here."

Ruby pushes the nachos over to Michelle. "Here you need these more than I do. I'm not really hungry."

Michelle picks up a nacho. "Then why were you eating them?" Michelle can see Ruby is significantly overweight.

"Habit, I suppose." Ruby takes a sip of chocolate milk.

"So, you like Drew, huh?" Michelle dips her nachos in cheese.

"He's about the only one who'll give me the time of day since I moved here."

"Why?" Michelle asks.

"They don't favor over weight people around here. I'd move back to Oz but I don't get along with my mum and step-dad and I do like Drew quite a bit."

"Don't let anyone make you feel bad about yourself." Michelle bites into her nacho.

"That's easy for you to say. You're beautiful. You look like one of those runway models." Ruby watches Michelle eat. "And please don't tell me about inner beauty and outer beauty. That's what everyone says to me because they think I'm ugly and it'll make me feel better."

"You are _not_ ugly, Ruby, you're beautiful and I'm not talking about inner beauty.. Look at you. You have gorgeous big green eyes, and beautiful silky long blonde hair. People highlight their hair to get that color. You have a cute little nose and high cheek bones."

"So, if I wasn't fat I would be beautiful?" Ruby sips on her chocolate milk. "I've tried all the diets and after I lose the weight I end up gaining even more back."

"Come with me." Michelle puts her nachos down and walks into the living room. She picks her purse up and heads into the bathroom.

"Why am I following you to the toilet?" Ruby scowls. "You're not one of those weird predators are you?"

"No." Michelle laughs. "I'm going to teach you a few tricks so you'll feel better about yourself." Michelle pulls some makeup out of her bag. "Here, you can keep these. They're samples I got from the saleslady at the store." Michelle applies some blush and mascara on Ruby. "Do you see the difference?"

"Yes." Ruby looks at herself in the mirror. "It looks nice."

"The blush accentuates your high cheek bones and the mascara brings out your eyes. Here try putting on some lip gloss."

Ruby applies the lip-gloss and follows Michelle into the living room. Michelle pulls a bottle of nail polish out of her purse." Put your fingers out on the table.

Ruby does as told and Michelle starts polishing her nails. When she's finished Michelle pulls her hair back into a french braid. "You look beautiful. How do you feel?" Michelle asks when she's done.

"I feel better but I still feel fat."

"If you're not happy with your weight we could work on it. But you feel a little better about yourself now, don't you?"

"I do. Thank you." Ruby's eyes start to tear up. "Nobody else has ever taken the time to listen to me."

Michelle give her a hug. "I'll give you my number, we can talk."

"Thank you." Ruby says again.

Chase and Drew come in the house. Drew looks at Ruby. "Wow, you look so pretty."

"Thanks. Michelle gave me some make up tips."'

Chase tells Michelle. "Obviously, my parents forgot about us. I'm starving. Where do you want to go to eat?"

Drew adds. "Don't worry dad and momma forget about me all the time. They're always at the hospital or Andie's house."

"Welcome to my world." Ruby tells Drew.

"Come on." Chase squeezes Drew on the shoulder. "You and Ruby can come out with with us."

"But we already ate." Drew tells him.

"We'll go bowling. Michelle and I can grab something to eat at the bowling alley while we all play a game." Chase ushers them out the door.

Michelle sighs as she walks out the door. "I was looking forward to the seafood dinner your dad invited us to."

"And then forgot about." Drew can't help but laugh.

* * *

Andie and Nicky walk through the front door of their house. "Poppas home!" Harper and Charley run up to hug him. "Yay! Poppa's home!" Harper yells out again so her grandparents can hear.

"Chill out guys." Nicky hugs them both. "It's only been four days since you saw me."

Michael Nikolas toddles over pulling a wooden horse on four legs.

"Where'd you get that, Mikey?" Nicky asks.

"Grandma Leslie and Grandpa Bruce brought it home from Greece for him and they got me this." Harper shows him a piece of rice engraved with her name on it hanging on a chain. "And they gave me a Smurf book in Greek and a couple other books in Greek except I don't know how to read them."

"That's the idea, rabbit, they want you to learn." Nicky takes the book to look at.

"Look what I gots, poppa." Charley shows him a children's first words book in Greek and a Greek alphabet book." Pappou says it will help me with kindergarten.

Andie jokes. "If you plan on starting kindergarten in Greece it'll help you but not here." Andie takes the books from Charley to look at it. "You need to learn the English alphabet first."

"There's nothing wrong with the kids learning a little Greek." Nicky tweaks Andie's nose.

"Hello." Leslie hurries to the front door to hug Nicky. "We missed you!"

"How was the wedding, mom?" Nicky gives Leslie a hug and kiss on the cheek.

"We had a great time at the wedding but we missed you. Everyone was asking about you and your band and the kids."

Andie takes a mental note that Leslie didn't mention that anyone asked about her, the mother of those kids.

"Did you bring them a copy of my album?" Nicky asks his mother.

"We did and they loved it." Leslie picks up Michael. She kisses the toddler on the cheek. "I can't get over how much he looks like you at his age."

Andie also notes that Leslie favors Michael Nikolas, the only one of her children that looks like Nicky until Hope was born.

Nicky sniffs the air. "What is that amazing smell?"

"Your father is in the kitchen. He made Pastitsio for dinner. His mother made it for him a few times when we were in Greece now he's craving it. The kids ate already but if you're hungry there's plenty more."

"Good, I'm starving." Nicky and Andie walk into the kitchen.

"Hey pop. I'm home."

Bruce turns around from the stove. "Nicky, ti kanis?"

"I'm great, pop, but starving."

"Sit down, I made Pastitsio for you." Bruce fixes Nicky a plate. "Do you want to try some?" He asks Andie.

"Sure."

Bruce tells Andie, "my mother used to make this all the time when I was a kid. I love it but Nicky's mom can't cook so if I want it I have to make it myself, you know?" He scoops some on a plate for Andie. "And there's fresh Baklava for desert. Nicky's mom loves to eat it but she wouldn't dare know how to make it."

"That's not true, pop." Nicky eats his Pastitsio. "Mom always made Greek dinners for Christmas for you until you got divorced."

"Well, if she was a good cook I would never have divorced her." He teases.

Leslie comes into the kitchen now. "We picked up a few things for you, Nicky, you can have them when you finish eating."

Bruce answers. "Nikolas isn't five years old, Leslie, you can give him his gifts while he eats."

"You didn't have to bring me anything back." Nicky tells his parents. "You bought enough souvenirs for the kids."

"We wanted to." Leslie leaves the room to get the souvenirs.

"Sometimes your mother forgets that you're a grown man, Nick."

"It's okay, pop, I don't mind." Nicky takes a sip of his beer,

Leslie comes back in the kitchen. "Here, open this one first." She hands him a small box. Nicky opens it. There's a blue charm with a design of an eye on it. "Do you know what it is?"

"Yeah, it's a mati charm. I had one when I was a little kid."

"What is it?" Andie looks at the charm.

"It wards off bad luck or the evil eye." Bruce explains.

"I bought one for all the kids too. You might want to bring Hope hers soon. She can use the luck." Leslie explains. "Here open this one next." Leslie hands Nicky another box.

Nicky opens it. "Yum! Pasteli, my favorite. You want to try some, Belle?" Nicky holds the box out to her. "It's Greek candy."

"No, thank you." Andie eats her Pastitsio dinner.

"Okay, Harper! You can bring in the big present now!" Leslie calls out.

Harper walks into the kitchen carrying a decorative looking musical instrument that sort of reminds her of a guitar. "Here poppa, it's a bouzouki."

Nicky's eyes light up. "Wow. I know what it is, rabbit." Nicky checks out the instrument while Harper holds it. "You want me to teach you how to play it?"

"Yeah!" Harper jumps up and down.

"Not until your poppa finishes his dinner. Go check on your little brothers, Harper Ava." Leslie instructs.

Nicky gives his mother a kiss. "Thank you so much for all the gifts, I hope that was the last one. You spent too much money already."

"Your Uncle Dimitri made the bouzouki, he opened his own shop so we got a discount." Bruce tells him.

Andie rises to her feet. "Excuse me, if you don't mind, I'm going to lie down for a little while. I'm not feeling well." Andie walks out of the kitchen.

"It's not the Pastitsio." Bruce calls after her. "We all ate it, including the kids and we didn't get sick."

"Don't tell me that girl is pregnant again." Leslie says to Nicky. "That girl multiplies like a rabbit."

"She's not pregnant, mom. I'll go check on her."

"You haven't finished your dinner, yet."

"I'm almost done." Nicky gets up out of his chair." Thanks, dad, the Pastitsio was delicious!" Nicky walks upstairs to the bedroom. Andie's lying on the bed on her back staring at the ceiling.

"What's wrong, Belle?"

"Your mother hates me."

"She does not."

"Does to."

Nicky sits on the bed next to her. "What brings this on all of the sudden?"

"She never wanted us to go out in the first place cuz of the cousin thing."

"We got past that a long time ago, Belle."

"Yeah, she was actually okay to me after the kids were born especially Michael Nikolas because he's a mini-you but ever since Hope was born she's treated me like a rotten egg."

"What?" Nicky's surprised. "Why would she do that?"

"She blames me for all Hope's medical problems cuz of the cousin thing." Andie looks at the ceiling.

"That's not true or she would blame me for Hope's problems too."

"No, she wouldn't because you're her precious son who can do no wrong in her eyes. I'm your evil bitch of a wife."

Nicky rubs her leg. "My mother doesn't hate you, Belle."

Andie argues. "She brought you and the kids a bunch of souvenirs back from Greece, what did I get? I got zilch-nada-nothing!" Andie complains. "Oh, yeah, your mother really loves me-_not_." She says, sarcastically.

"Do you want me to talk to her?"

"What good is that going to do? You can't force her to like me."

Nicky lies down next to Andie on the bed. He tries to cheer her up. "My dad likes you." He tickles her belly. Andie starts to laugh. "And I love you." Nicky kisses her neck while he tickles her. Andie squirms around under his tickling hands, giggling.

Leslie opens the door to the bedroom. She notices them on the bed. "Can't you two control yourselves? The kids are downstairs."

"This is our bedroom, mom, and I was just trying to cheer Andie up."

"Why does Andie need cheering up?

"You brought everyone else a few things back from Greece and you didn't pick up anything for Andie."

"What is she two years old?" Leslie snarks at Nicky. "You can share your Pasteli with her. Lord knows you share everything else with her."

"What's that supposed to mean, mom?"

"Never mind." Leslie leaves the room, shutting the door behind her.

"I told you she doesn't like me."

"Well, I love you." Nicky climbs on top of Andie kissing her. "And I missed you like crazy when I was on tour."

"Me too." Andie kisses him back.


	40. Chapter 40

_**CHAPTER 40**_

* * *

Michelle rolls over in bed to find Chase lying next to her, staring at her.

"Can I help you?" She asks.

"Today's the day. I'm actually nervous."

"I'm not," she tells him. "I'm three days late. I'm confident."

"When should we do it?" He asks.

"I have to pee right now." Michelle swings her legs over her side of bed to get up. She pads into the bathroom. Chase follows her. "What are you doing?" She asks him.

"I'm nervous. I don't want to wait outside. I want to come with you."

"Okay, you big baby" Michelle makes a circular motion with her finger. "Turn around and face the window while I pull down my pajama bottoms."

"It's not like I've never seen you without your pants on before."

"That's in bed. You've never seen me on the toilet before, it's not sexy, spin yourself around if you want to stay."

Chase does as told. Michelle opens the box and pulls out the test stick and begins to pee on it. "Cover your ears." She tells him. "I don't want you to remember me this way."

"You mean human? Humans pee."

"I don't want you to have a visual of me sitting on a toilet peeing, in your mind."

"That's right." Chase teases. "Because you don't pee, you're not human, you're my sex goddess." Chase chuckles. He covers his ears as instructed. When she's finished peeing she hands him the stick, "Here, hold this but don't turn around until I say it's okay."

Chase takes the test strip from her without turning his head. "Since when are you modest?"

"I told you toilets and peeing are not sexy. Nobody watches me sit on a toilet." Michelle pulls her pants up. "Okay, you can turn around now." Michelle pads over to the sink to wash her hands. Chase stalks up behind her with a smile on his face. "I got bad news for you."

She looks at his reflection in the mirror. "Then why are you smiling?"

"Because the positive sign on this stick means I'm going to be very happy in nine months but you're going to have to figure out a way to deliver a baby with your pants on."

Michelle's mouth drops open. "It's positive?" She looks at the stick.

"You're gonna be a momma." He kisses her.

"I knew it! I had a feeling!" She jumps up and down a little.

"I knew it too. It was the first time we did it in Aruba. I got a really good shot in the first time."

"We can't tell anyone this time. It was torture having to tell everyone I had a miscarriage last time."

"What about my parents? Can we tell them?"

"Your father has a big mouth so we can't tell anyone until I'm twelve weeks this time."

"Yes, ma'am. I mean yes, momma." Chase beams with happiness.

* * *

Drew meets Ruby at the skate park. "You look great." Drew kisses her on the cheek. Her long blonde hair is in curls and she has makeup on just like Michelle showed her.

"Thanks, I feel better about myself. Nobody ever showed me how to apply make-up until I met Michelle. She's really nice. You're lucky to have someone like her in your family."

Drew shrugs. "I guess."

"Don't you like her?" Ruby sits on a swing.

Drew sits on the swing next to her. "Michelle's nice but so was Tess."

"Who's Tess?" Ruby kicks her legs to go higher.

"My brother met Tess in high school. They went out for ten years and were engaged to be married but something happened when my brother met Michelle. Tess ended up leaving town and we never saw her again." Drew sighs. "I miss her…a lot. I've known her since I was five years old. I feel like I lost an older sister."

"What happened when he met Michelle?"

"He fell in love with her. Tess left town so she didn't have to watch Chase be in love with another woman.'

"That's so sad." Ruby jumps off the swing. "I feel bad for Tess and I don't even know her. How could Chase just stop loving her and fall in love with Michelle."

Drew explains."At the time, Chase and Tess were arguing. My brother wanted to get married and have kids right away and Tess wanted to wait until her she was established in her career. Michelle came along and agreed to get married and start a family right away."

"Boogers."

"Huh?" Drew scrunches up his face.

"I'm no expert but I'd say Chase isn't being fair to Michelle."

"Why?"

"To marry someone just because they're willing to have a baby with you isn't right. What happens when the baby grows up?"

"I'm not saying that's the only reason Chase loves Michelle. It just happened so fast. Tess left town and Chase got engaged to Michelle less than three months later. They rushed into it because they both want kids."

"Then why don't they have any yet?"

"Michelle was pregnant but she had a miscarriage. I think they're trying for another baby now."

"I hope it works out for them, they're both really nice people."

"Yeah." Drew nods.

"Isn't that your mate, Sarah Wallace, over there on that bench? It looks like she's crying."

Drew looks. "Yeah, it is. You mind if I go over and see what's wrong?"

"Hoo-roo. I'll be on the swings."

Drew walks over to Sarah. "Are you okay?"

"No."

"What's wrong? Why are you crying?"

"Kyle broke up with me." Sarah sniffles.

"Sorry." Drew sits on the bench next to her.

"No, you're not. You hate Kyle." Sarah wipes her eyes.

"Well, he's always calling me midget man."

Sarah chuckles at that.

"Why did he break up with you?"

"Because I wouldn't put out. I told him I wanted to wait until I was fifteen. He told me if I didn't have sex with him he would find a girl that would."

"Kyle's a jerk. You're better off without him"

"I know."

"So, why are you crying?"

"Because I was supposed to go with him the dance next week, now I don't have a date." Sarah looks up at Drew. "Will you go with me?"

"I can't. I'm going with Ruby."

"You don't have to go with Ruby. You can go with me."

"Ruby's my girlfriend."

"C'mon Drew. She's huge, go to the dance with me."

"Sorry. I can't." Drew walks away from Sarah back towards Ruby on the swings.

* * *

Tess meets Damien at an Italian Restaurant. She's wearing a little black dress and heels.

"You look beautiful." Damien pulls out the chair for her.

"Thank you. You look good too." Michelle opens her menu.

"Where's your baby tonight?"

"My grandma is watching Brayden tonight. I live with her so I have an in house babysitter except when she goes to visit my folks in LA."

"Didn't you say Brayden's father lives in LA?"

Tess nods. "Yes, I used to live there. I left when we broke up."

"Well, I'm glad you moved to Georgia." Damien pours her a glass of wine. "Or I wouldn't have met you."

Tess sips the wine. "You don't have a Georgia accent. Where do you come from?"

"I was born in California, went to college at Penn State, worked in New York for two years until I was transferred to Atlanta."

"What do you do, if you don't mind me asking?'

"I'm a pharmaceutical salesman. I travel a lot with my job."

"That's nice, you get to see the world and it's on the company's budget." Tess sips her wine.

"It's okay, sometimes I get tired of living out of a hotel room."

"I can see that too." Tess smiles. "I'm an Ob-Gyn, well I was almost finished with my residency when Brayden was born. I decided to take a year off. I'll go back to my residency when Brayden's one year old."

"Beautiful and smart. I'm impressed." Damien sips his wine.

Tess blushes.

"Ah, a modest woman. I love modest women." He clinks his wine glass with her.

Tess sighs. "I don't know why I'm blushing." She blushes more.

The waitress brings their food over.

"That looks good." Damien looks at Tess's plate.

"Do you want a taste?"

"I'll give you a taste of mine if you give me a taste of yours." Damien tells her.

"Okay." Tess nods.

Damien scoops some of his seafood ravioli onto his fork and feeds it to Tess. Tess is taken off guard at first but eats off of his fork. She scoops up some of her lasagna and feeds it to him. It feels a little awkward at first but after doing this for a few bites it's fun.

Tess laughs. "The couple at that table over there are looking at us feed each other."

"They either hate each other or they're new lovers and don't have the guts to feed each other in public." Damien spoons more ravioli into Tess's mouth until she calls mercy. "I'm stuffed. I'm going to need to jog an extra mile tomorrow morning."

"Me too." Damien untucks his shirt from his pants. "I'd loosen my belt but that couple over there would probably have a heart attack."

Tess laughs. The waitress brings over the bill and they both reach for it. Damien puts his hand on Tess's hand. "I invited you out to dinner. I got it."

"Thank you." Tess blushes.

"Your face is flushed again. I love it." Damien takes money out of his wallet and leaves it on the table. He helps Tess up and they walk out of the restaurant holding hands.

"Do you want to go out for a drink?" Tess asks as they walk hand in hand to her car. "My treat."

"I know a place where the liquor is free." Damien smiles.

"Where's that?" Tess asks.

"My place. You can follow me there in your car."

Tess blushes again. "Okay."

She climbs in her car and follows him. She surprises herself that she's doing this. The only guy she's ever slept with was Chase for ten years. In the past two months she's been sleeping with BJ but she's made it clear that they're just friends with benefits. Chase is having sex with Michelle so she might as well be having sex too. Damien is different than BJ though, he's hot, so she's a little nervous about making an impression. She hopes he doesn't think she's a hussy for following him home on the first date. She parks behind him in the driveway of the modern style home.

"Nice place." She tells him as he opens the front door.

"Thank you." He holds the door open for her. "The bathroom is down the hall to the right if you need to use it."

"How'd you know?"

"You had a couple glasses of wine." He smiles. "What can I make you to drink while you're freshining up?"

"Can you make a martini?"

"I'm on it." Damien mixes the drink while Tess uses the bathroom. She comes out a few minutes later and he hands her the drink. "Have a seat." He shows her to the brown leather couch. She sits in the middle and he sits in the vacant spot next to her. He doesn't leave any space between them, their thighs are touching. He's certainly not shy. "How's the martini?" He asks soflty, just above a whisper.

"It's good." Tess nods. "One of the best I've ever had." She's a little nervous, she senses he's about to make a move. Her heart races with nervous anticipation. Sex became very relaxed with Chase after the first few times and... BJ... BJ's just a friend with benefits so she doesn't get nervous about that. This is the real thing. She doesn't remember feeling this combination of excitement mixed with nerves since her first fews times with Chase.

Damien moves in closer. "Good, because I aim to please." He says above a whisper while he moves the palm of his hand slowly and softlly up the inside of her thigh and under her dress. "Is it working?" He whispers in her ear. "Am I pleasing you?"

"Uhm..-" She's a little distracted at the feel of his fingers on her panties. "Yeah." She swallows

"You're blushing again." He watches her expression as he slips one finger and then another into her panties. "How's that feel?" He whispers in her ear, in a deep throaty voice.

She feels like her heart is going to thump out of her chest. "It feels good." She manages to breath out and tell him.

He plays with her hair with his other hand for a few seconds before he uses it to slide the zipper down the back of her dress. He unclasps her bra with one hand. "Am I doing okay?" He whispers in a deep throaty voice into her ear.

She nods her head. He takes that as a sign to continue and tugs down the top of her dress. He kisses her neck. The vein in her neck is beating hard and fast. "Don't be nervous." He says quietly as he continues to kiss down to her chest. He touches her nipple and she nearly jumps off the couch. He chuckles at that. "I gather you haven't been touched in a long time?"

She swallows, embarrassed. "I haven't." Chase hasn't touched her in almost two years and BJ doesn't count, she thinks. She never felt this way when BJ touched her. There's something about Damien that makes her heart thump.

"Don't worry. I'll be gentle." He makes swirls around her nipple with his thumb. She moans, softly.

"How about if we both take our clothes all the way off?" He asks quietly while her rubs her nipple for her.

"As long as you don't think I'm a whore." She answers breathlessly at the feeling of what he's doing to her. His hands feel so good, too good.

"I know a classy lady when I meet one." He whispers in her ear while he works magic on her with his fingers. "I know you need it." He whispers in her ear.

Tess sighs and wraps her arms around his neck. "Okay." She whispers in his ear now. He licks her bottom lip before easing his tongue into her mouth for a deep kiss. He takes his other hand and tugs down her panties before he removes his own shirt. She's amazed by his six pack. She's never seen him without a shirt. "Wow. you're in remarkable shape."

"It's all yours tonight, Tess." He takes off his belt and unbuttons his pants, pulling them off, revealing his silk blue boxers. Tess pulls her dress off over her head and throws it across the room. He lifts her up and carries her into the bedroom. Once in the bedroom he stands her up in front of the mirror. He stands behind her and places one hand on her breast and the other between her legs. "Watch in the mirror." He tells her. They both watch as he caresses her with one hand and slides his fingers between her legs with the other. There's something about watching this sexy guy with the big muscles touch her that turns her on even more. She moans, placing her hand over his fingers helping him to rub her harder. "You're perfect and wet." He whispers.

"I know." Tess breathes heavy. "You're turning me on."

"Watch this, keep your eyes on the mirror." He pulls his boxers off and lifts her up onto the dresser, spreading her legs. She watches herself in the mirror on the other side of the room. He enters her while she's sitting on the dresser and then lifts her up. He slides and bounces her up and down against his body while he holds her tight against him. She tingles as her sweaty body slides against his sweaty chest and six pack. She keeps her legs wrapped tight around his hips and grinds into him as he slides in and out of her. She moans, groans and twitches in his arms as she orgasms. When her body stills, she lies her head against him with her arms and legs still clinging tightly onto him. He carries her over to the bed lies her down on her back and climbs on top of her now, he enters her again. This time he slams in and out of her hard and fast, grunting until he climaxes and spills into her, luckily she went back on birth control when she started sleeping with BJ.

"Wow!" She tells him. "You're really strong. I never did it like that before."

He rolls onto his back all sweaty. "You never did it standing up before?"

"No." She smiles. "Chase would probably drop me. He doesn't have as big muscles as you. I never knew how built up you were until you took your shirt off." Tess squeezes his upper arm muscle.

"You like?" He asks.

"I love." She pokes at the hard muscle in his upper arm.

"I guess that means we'll have a second date?" He asks.

"Definitely." Tess gets out of bed.

"Where are you going?" He asks.

"I have to get home. My grandmother will ask questions if I'm out all night." Tess looks for her clothes on the floor.

Damien helps her get dressed and walks her to the door. "I'll call you tomorrow." He kisses her goodbye.

Tess drives home and feels tears come to her eyes. "You're an idiot." She talks to herself in the rearview mirror. "You just had amazing sex with a hot body builder dude and you're crying because he wasn't Chase." Tess wipes her tears. "What the hell is wrong with me? Why can't I stop thinking about Chase?"

* * *

_**REVIEW**_


	41. Chapter 41

_**CHAPTER 41**_

* * *

Two weeks later, on a Sunday evening, Cooper opens the front door to greet Chase and Michelle. "You're home?" Chase teases. "We weren't sure if you were going to forget about inviting us again. We stopped for fast food on the way just in case." Chase holds up a white bag.

"You did not." Charlotte looks over from the living room while holding Hope.

"We did not." Michelle walks in. "We stopped at the bakery and picked up some apple fritters for dessert. I've been craving them."

Chase glances at Michelle, she's not doing a good job of keeping this pregnancy quiet for the first twelve weeks if she's going to go around telling people about her cravings.

Charlotte doesn't say anything if she caught on.

Michelle walks over to give Hope a kiss on her head. "She looks good." Michelle tells Charlotte. "How was her first night home from the hospital?"

"Great." Charlotte spreads Hope's toes out to play with them as she holds the five and a half month old baby. "I don't think Andie got much sleep though, she stayed up watching her all night."

"Where is Andie?" Michelle follows Charlotte into the kitchen.

"She took Harper and Charley to the airport to pick up Nicky, he's flying in from Atlanta."

"Atlanta, Georgia?" Chase questions. Chase is aware Tess has been living with her grandmother in Atlanta since she left LA.

"Yeah, Broken Spell was playing there this weekend."

"Oh." Chase takes baby Hope from Charlotte's arms while she sets out the dinner plates.

"You look good holding her, Chase. I can't wait to see you hold our baby." Michelle smiles.

Chase sighs. "You keep dropping hints, Michelle. Do you want my momma to know?"

Charlotte looks at Chase and then Michelle. "Are you pregnant?"

"Yes!" Michelle says, excitedly. "But you can't tell anyone."

"Why not?" Charlotte takes the baked ham out of the oven

Chase answers. "Because of the miscarriage, we don't want to have to go through that again-telling people we're pregnant and then telling people we're not pregnant again, so...-"

"How far along are you?"

"Almost eight weeks which is good because last time when I miscarried I wasn't even six weeks yet."

Charlotte hugs Michelle first. "Congratulations." She turns to hug Chase who's holding Hope. "You do look good holding a baby, you're going to be a wonderful dad."

"Thanks, momma." Chase hugs Charlotte. "Where'd dad go?"

"He went upstairs to give Michael Nikolas a bath. He got a little too into his finger painting. It was on his nose, in his hair you name it."

"Who dad or Michael Nikolas?" Chase jokes.

"Your dad of course." Charlotte plays along.

"You see what we have to look forward to." Chase smiles at Michelle.

"I can't wait."

Drew walks in the kitchen with Ruby. "G'day," Ruby greets everyone.

Charlotte looks over at Ruby whose applied her makeup and curled her hair. She's wearing a black dress today as opposed to her typical t-shirt and jeans. "You look lovely." Charlotte tells the fourteen-year old.

"Thank you. I figured since it was a big family dinner." Ruby blushes since they're all looking at her now.

"Is dinner ready yet?" Drew asks.

"Yep, we're just waiting for your father to bring Michael Nikolas down and for Andie and Nicky to come home from the airport."

"Do you need any help?" Ruby asks Charlotte.

"I'm good." Charlotte smiles when Andie walks in the kitchen with Nicky and the kids.

"Poppa's back!" Harper announces.

"Great. Go tell your grandpa and Michael it's time to eat then."

Charlotte puts the ham on the table while everyone finds a seat. "How was Atlanta?"

"It was beautiful." Nicky tells her. "Nice weather and the all the concerts went off without a glitch."

Cooper strolls in the kitchen with Michael Nikolas.

"There's my little man." Nicky takes Michael Nikolas from Cooper. "Hope looks great too." Nicky smiles at his youngest child.

Chase straps Hope in the high chair while Nicky puts Michael Nikolas in a booster seat. "Looks like you've been bumped out of your high chair and you're not even two years old yet, Mikey." Nicky talks to the almost two year old.

"That's what you get for having all those kids." Cooper teases.

"You had four kids too, daddy." Andie scoops food onto Michael Nikolas's plate and hands it to Nicky.

"I want four kids too." Chase announces.

"What about you, Michelle?" Cooper cuts up his ham.

"Four is good for me too." Michelle passes the mashed potatoes to Drew. "I've always been a kid person."

"You'll make a great mum some day." Ruby passes the mashed potatoes now. "You have a lot of patience."

"You should get started soon, if you want four of them." Drew tells Chase and Michelle.

Michelle and Chase exchange glances, they're not ready to tell everyone their happy news so Chase decides to change the subject away from baby talk. "So, tell us about your tour, Nick."

"It's going great." Nicky spoons mashed potatoes onto his plate. "Oh, I ran into Tess while I was there."

The entire table gets quiet for a few seconds until Harper says. "I miss Aunt Tess."

"How did you happen to run into Tess?" Cooper asks.

"She heard Broken Spell was playing in Atlanta so she called me for some tickets. I gave her some VIP seats."

"That was nice of you." Charlotte hands Hope a biscuit to suck on. "How is Tess doing?"

"She looked great." Nicky pulls his phone out of his pocket. "I invited her and her boyfriend backstage. I think I have a picture." Nicky scrolls through his phone.

Michelle doesn't look up from her plate. She worries if Tess told Nicky that she had Chase's baby.

"Here it is." Nicky passes his phone to Charlotte.

"Wow, she does look great." Charlotte passes the phone to Cooper.

Cooper nods. "She looks happy. I guess that guy she's standing next to is her boyfriend?"

"Let me see, dad." Andie grabs the phone.

"Yeah, his name is Damien." Nicky cuts up some more ham for Michael Nikolas. "He loves this stuff." Nicky tells Charlotte referring to the ham.

"Damien is hot." Andie announces. "He looks like a body builder."

Nicky nods. "He said he works out whenever he can but he travels a lot."

"What does he do for a living?" Charlotte asks.

"He's a pharmaceutical representative. He travels around the country selling medications and medical supplies to doctor's office's and hospitals." Nicky explains.

"We're well aware of what a phramaceutical rep is." Charlotte tells Nicky. "I worked with them all the time at St. Ambrose."

"How is Tess doing?" Cooper asks. "She must be almost done with her Ob-Gyn residency now?"

"Nah." Nicky said. "She took the year off. She's not working right now."

Chase is surprised to hear this. "Why?" He screws up his face.

"She had a baby so she took time off from her residency." Nicky tells them.

"What?" Chase exclaims. "No way!"

Michelle swallows and turns white as a ghost., this is it, she thinks to herself.

Nicky answers."She must have got pregnant shortly after she moved to Atlanta and decided to stay home and raise him."

"Now Tess decides she wants a kid?" Chase is shaken. "When she was with me she wanted to wait until she was settled in her career but she goes and has this dude's baby and quits her residency." Chase grabs the phone from Andie, looks at the picture and slams the phone down.

"Hey, easy with my phone." Nicky reaches over and picks his phone up from the table.

Michelle breathes a sigh of relief that it doesn't occur to Chase that Tess's baby is his. He thinks it belongs to her new body builder boyfriend.

"How old is the baby?" Charlotte asks.

"I didn't ask." Nicky eats his ham. "She didn't bring the baby to the concert with her."

"Tess looks pretty good in that picture for someone who gave birth recently." Andie comments.

"She works out a lot with Damien, she told me. He's a big work out buff. She says he's helping her get sculpted."

"I guess Tess has totally changed." Chase throws his napkin down. "She has a baby, she quit her residency, she's into muscle men." Chase throws his napkin down on his plate and rises to his feet.

"Why are you so upset?" Andie asks. "You're married now. Tess isn't your business anymore."

Chase leaves the kitchen. Michelle gets up to follow him. "Wait, Chase." She hugs him. "Don't worry about Tess. We're having our own baby soon."

"I know." Chase hugs Michelle tight. "I'm so happy I found you."

Charlotte comes out of the kitchen now. "Do you mind if I talk to Chase a moment?"

"Go ahead." Michelle smiles at Charlotte before walking back in the kitchen.

"She's taking it well." Charlotte says to Chase when she's sure Michelle is out of ear shot.

"What do you mean?" Chase asks.

"Michelle's pregnant with your child. She must know you still love with Tess by the way you reacted in the kitchen."

"It doesn't matter how I feel about Tess. I'm having a baby with Michelle now and Tess has a baby with that muscle head."

"He's a pharmaceutical rep, Chase, and if working out is his hobby, it's not a bad hobby to have."

"So, you like this guy, then?" Chase asks his momma, annoyed.

"I've never met him but I'm happy for Tess."

"Momma, she left me and went to Georgia where she met another guy and had his baby. She wanted to put off having a baby with _me_ but then she goes and has one with muscle head."

"Maybe she thought about things when she went to Georgia. Maybe she changed her mind. She did come back to talk to you three months after she left but when I told her you were engaged to Michelle she decided to go back home."

"You think she came back to LA to work things out with me and tell me she was ready to set the date and have a baby, momma?"

"Why else would she come all the way back to LA and then turn around and beat it the hell outta here when I told her you were engaged to Michelle? She was very upset when I told her."

"I really blew it." Chases slams his fists together. "I can't believe I screwed things up so bad."

"You cheated on Tess with Michelle, then got engaged to the Michelle less than three months later. Tess had every right to upset."

"And now she's happy with muscle head and their baby. It's not fair muscle head has everything I've ever wanted."

"Chase," Charlotte reminds him. "You married Michelle. She's going to have your baby in seven and a half more months."

"I know." Chase puts his hands over his eyes. "I really screwed this up."

Charlotte hugs Chase. "Don't you love Michelle?"

Chase sighs. "I love Michelle like I love you and dad and Andie but I don't think I'll ever stop being _in love _with Tess."

"What are you going to do?" Charlotte asks.

"There's not much I can do. Tess has a baby with that guy and I'm having a baby with Michelle. There's nothing I can do now. It's too late for me and Tess."

"It's never too late." Charlotte kisses Chase on the cheek and heads back into the kitchen.

Michelle passes Charlotte on the way out. "I want to go home, Chase."

"Why?"

"You made me look like a fool tonight. You got so upset that Tess has a baby with another guy. Now everyone thinks you're still in love with her."

"We had this conversation once before, Michelle. You admitted to me you still have feelings for Benn and I admitted I still have feelings for Tess but they have different life goals than we do so we can't be with them."

"Yeah, well now that Tess has changed her life goals, do you want her back?"

"That's not going to happen. She has a baby with that muscle man and you're having my baby. I'm not going anywhere, Michelle." Chase hugs her. "I promise."

Michelle cries in Chase's arms. Her lie is becoming too overwhelming for her.

"Shhh ..." Chase feels guilty now for hurting Michelle.

Michelle wipes her eyes. "Sorry, I'm acting like a big baby, it must be the hormones."

"No, I should be the one to say I'm sorry." Chase holds Michelle's hand and leads her out the door. "You didn't to anything wrong."

* * *

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	42. Chapter 42

_**A/N-** I wasn't planning to post this weekend but since I received several in depth reviews for the last two chapters I decided to post for y'all today. Once again, thanks for reading/reviewing =)_

_**CHAPTER 42**_

* * *

It's a Monday morning. Tess wakes up in bed at BJ's house. She stayed over last night since Damien left yesterday for a business trip to the west coast. BJ's playing airplane with Brayden next to Tess in bed. "Mornin'." Tess stretches and yawns. "When did you boys wake up?"

"Only about fifteen minutes ago. We decided to let you sleep."

"Thank you but don't you have to work today?" Tess looks at the clock. It's 9:05 am.

"I'm scheduled to do oral surgery this afternoon so I have the morning off." BJ holds Brayden up in the air and flies him around like an airplane. "My first appointment is scheduled for 2pm so I have the whole morning to play with you guys."

"Aren't you lucky, Bray-Bud?" Tess tickles the nine month old while BJ holds him up in the air. Brayden scrunches his face and giggles when his momma tickles his belly.

"He's a happy little guy." BJ lifts Brayden up and down over his chest like he's a weight. "I can get my workout right here with this little guy."

Tess takes Brayden from BJ. "You are a happy little guy, aren't you?" Tess kisses Brayden on the nose. "How's momma's boy this morning?"

"Ma-ma-ma-ma." Brayden babbles.

"I changed his diaper and gave him his morning bottle already." BJ tells Tess.

"Thank you again. I don't even need to get out of bed this morning." Tess smiles.

BJ gets up out of bed to pull some clothes out of his closet. "Did you hear that the band Broken Spell is going to be playing this Thursday night in Atlanta?"

"Yeah...They played here last weekend too. I went to see them Friday night."

"You did?"

"Yeah..You went to your mothers house for her birthday party and I went to see Broken Spell."

"That's why you didn't want to come with me to my mother's party. I would have chosen to see Broken Spell over the party too if I was you."

"No." Tess shakes her head. "That's not why I didn't go to your mother's birthday party with you. I didn't go because we're just friends. We're not boyfriend-girlfriend and if I went to the party with you people would assume we were dating."

"Just friends can come with just friends to their mother's birthday parties." BJ smirks.

"It would feel like we were dating if we went to the party together. I want to keep a solid line there that signifies that we're just friends. We don't cross over to the dating world."

"But we're having sex." BJ scrunches up his nose.

"Because we agreed to be friends with benefits. If you want to give up the benefits part and be _just friends_ I'd be cool with it."

"I don't want to give up the benefits part." BJ raises his eyebrows up and down.

"Okay then." Now that Tess has been sleeping with BJ for a couple of months she has no excuse to stop the sex part even though she doesn't need it anymore, she's getting that part satisfied just fine by her sexy new guy Damien.

"How'd you get tickets to Broken Spell, anyway?" BJ asks. "I heard they were sold out months ago."

"I know the lead singer, Nicky Poulos. He gave me two VIP tickets, he invited us backstage."

"Who'd you go with?"

"My friend."

"I thought I was your only friend?" BJ teases.

Tess gives him a sweet kiss on the lips. "You're my friend with benefits but I do have more friends." Tess laughs. "I've met people at my mommy and me classes with Brayden and I still talk to some doctors in the residency program at the hospital."

"I guess there's a lot I don't know about you. I didn't know you knew the lead singer of Broken Spell. They're one of my favorite bands... if I knew…-"

"Do you want me to call Nicky and ask for two more VIP seats to see them in concert?"

"If you do that for me I'll owe you. I'll do anything you want."

"Hmm.. I like _that_. I'll call Nicky as soon as I get out of bed and take a shower."

"So, how do you know Nick Poulos?"

"He's married to Chase's sister."

"Whoa." BJ looks at Brayden. "That means you have an uncle who is the lead singer of Broken Spell, you lucky kid."

"Too bad he'll never get to know him." Tess sighs.

"That sucks." BJ walks into the bathroom with his clothes in his hands. "I'll make breakfast after I'm out of the shower. I'll make you whatever you want as long as you get us those VIP tickets."

"Will do." Tess talks to baby Brayden after she hears BJ turn the shower water on. "What's your Uncle Nicky going to think when I ask him for more tickets and he sees me with a different guy at the concert this week?"

"Ba-ba-ga." Brayden babbles to her. "Boo-goo-ga-ba." He bats his arms up and down, bouncing while he talks to his momma.

"Yeah, I don't think he'll care either." Tess kisses Brayden's little fingers."He's busy with his band and the tour and Andie and the kids. He won't blink an eye about what I'm doing. I'm not part of The Freedman family anymore."

"Bah! Bah!" Brayden crawls around on the bed. "Bah!"

Tess phone rings on the bedside table. "It's Damien." She tells Brayden before placing him on the floor to crawl around. "Hey!" She answers the phone.

"You'll never guess where I am today?"

"You said you were working on the west coast this week."

"Yeah, but I'm doing business in LA today. Guess where?"

"Where?"

"Surfside Wellness center. I have a meeting with the doctors in ten minutes. I saw Chase Freedman's name listed as one of the doctors I'm meeting with today. I had to call and tell you."

"Holy Moly!" Tess's heart flutters. "You're going to meet Chase?"

"I've been here before but Chase didn't work here then. There was an older pediatrician with the same last name."

"Yeah, that's his father, Cooper."

"I signed a contract to sell them supplies three years ago when I was in LA."

"Wow."

"Good thing Chase has no idea I'm dating his ex-fiancé or he'd probably drop me as Surfside's drug representative."

"He doesn't have any idea who you are."

Damien looks at his watch. "I better get going, duty calls."

"Good luck and _don't_ say hi to Chase for me or his bimbo wife Michelle, she's a nurse there. That's how they met."

"I'll be back Friday, see if you can get a babysitter. I'll see you then." Damien hangs up.

BJ walks out of the bathroom from his shower. "Who was on the phone?"

"I left a message on Nicky's voicemail asking for tickets." Tess lies. "I'm going to take a shower while you cook us up some breakfast. I want cheesy grits and bacon this morning."

"You got it." BJ picks Brayden up and pads into the kitchen to start cooking.

* * *

Lucas, Danielle, Amelia, Jolie and Chase sit around the conference table waiting for the drug rep, Damien, to show up. Damien strolls in with goodies. He places a tray of fruit with yogurt dip in the center of the table along with some bagels with lox and cream cheese.

"We love the drug reps." Amelia tells him. "They always bring us good food." Amelia reaches for a slice of papaya.

"Yeah...We loved being bribed with food." Jolie dips an apple slice in the yogurt sauce.

"Good morning all." Damien announces with his best salesman smile. "I'm happy I could please your stomach's. Now if I can only do the same with your minds and wallets. I'm Damien Falcon." Damien shakes hands with Amelia. "Good to see you again, Dr. Shepard."

"A pleasure." Amelia bites into a huge juicy strawberry from the tray.

"Oooh...We love lox." Chase and Lucas grab the bagels with lox spread like hungry animals.

"We've done business with you before." Jolie rises to her feet to shake his hand. "Nice to have you back. Thank you for breakfast."

"Yes, we have." Damien passes out pens shaped like syringes with his company logo on them. His eyes focus on Chase. He's stunned at how much he looks like Tess's baby boy Brayden. "There are some new faces I don't recognize today." Damien announces.

Lucas stands up to shake Damien's hand "I'm Dr. Lucas Wilder, general medicine."

"Nice to meet you." Damien shakes his hand.

Danielle rises to her feet now while extending out her hand. "Dr. Danielle Montgomery, psychiatry." Damien shakes hands with her now too.

Chase stands up now and extends his hand out to Damien. "Dr. Chase Freedman, pediatrics."

Damien gives Chase a firm handshake and it suddenly occurs to Chase who he's shaking hands with after he feels Damien's strong grip. He remembers Nicky said that Tess 's body builder boyfriend was a drug rep named Damien who traveled for work. He remembers the picture of Damien on Nicky's phone. "Where are you from?" Chase asks.

"I was born and raised here in California but I'm currently living in Atlanta where my company's main office is based."

"Uh..huh." Chase sits down with a grimace on his face. He pushes his half eaten bagel with lox-spread away.

Damien gives his pitch trying to convince the doctors to buy the meds and medical supplies they need from his company. Chase watches Damien the entire time, not paying attention to his company pitch but thinking of him as the man Tess had a baby with. He stares at Damien's hands, thinking about those hands touching Tess. His gaze moves up to Damien's mouth now, thinking that those are the lips that kiss his Tess these days. He studies his eyes and face, the face that Tess must be in love with. He feels like he is going to explode. He wants to throw this guy up against the wall and punch him for having everything that he ever wanted. He restrains himself, wringing his fists together as Damien talks.

After he's done with his speech Damien excuses himself while the doctors discuss whether they want to keep up their contract with his company. Damien waits in the kitchen.

"You must be the drug rep." Michelle greets Damien as she walks in for a cup of tea. I'm Michelle Freedman, I'm a nurse here."

"Ah." Damien knows who she is right away. "I'm Damien Falcon."

Michelle remembers the name Damien and that Nicky said Tess's new boyfriend was a pharmaceutical rep. He looks exactly like the muscle man in the picture on Nicky's phone. "How are you doing?"

"I'm just sitting here hoping your doctors choose to stick with my company."

"I'm sure they will. They've been very satisfied with your company's products so far."

"We aim to please." Damien tells her.

Michelle sighs. "I could really go for a nice hot cup of coffee right now."

"There's a fresh pot right over there." Damien points.

"I can't drink it. I have to drink tea instead. I'm pregnant."

"Oh…Congratulations!" Damien tells her.

"Thanks, it's the first baby for my husband and I. I'm married to Dr. Chase Freedman." Michelle wants to make it clear.

"Well, good luck with your first baby."

"Thank you." Michelle walks out of the kitchen. She agreed with Chase they wouldn't tell anyone she's pregnant until she's twelve weeks but she had to let Damien know, hoping it will get back to Tess.

Chase sits around the conference table with the other doctors.

"Okay." Amelia announces. "Let's take a vote. Who wants to stick with Damien's company?"

They all raise their hands except Danielle and Chase.

"What do you think, Danielle?" Amelia asks "Aren't you happy with this company?"

"I'm happy with their products but aren't they more expensive than their competitors? Shouldn't we try to save money by going with someone else?"

Jolie shakes her head. "You get what you pay for Danielle. We've been happy with their products for the last three years. They're dependable, reliable and we get to meet with that hunk, Damien, if we have any problems with a product." Jolie teases.

Chase shakes his head, annoyed.

"What about you, Chase?" Amelia asks. "Why don't you want to stick with this company?"

Chase doesn't have a good answer. He wasn't paying attention to Damien's company pitch so he goes along with Danielle. "I think we should try to save money and go with someone else."

Lucas adds. "I say we stick with this company. The other companies are all going to raise their prices this year. We can tell Damien that if he's willing to throw in a few freebies, we'll stick with his company."

"Okay." Danielle nods. "If he's willing to throw in a few freebies it'll make up the price difference. I'll vote to go with his company then."

"Chase, you're the only hold out now." Amelia asks. "What do you say?"

Chase can't think of a good reason not to go with Damien's company besides he hates Damien for having a baby with Tess. "Whatever. Stick with this company if you want. I really don't care."

"Nice attitude for a new doctor in the practice." Jolie says, sarcastically, while tapping her pen on the table.

"I'll go call Damien back in to tell him we made a decision." Amelia leaves the room.

* * *

Tess finishes up her grits. She unstraps Brayden's high chair harness. "You are a mess Bray-Bud. You have cheesy grits all over your hands and face."

"I got it." BJ pulls Brayden up and out of the highchair. "I'll clean him up in the bath tub."

"Da-doo-da-doo." Brayden babbles as BJ carried him to the bathroom.

"Gee, thanks." Tess calls out. "That means I get to clean up the breakfast dishes, lucky me."

Tess's phone rings. She's surprised it's Damien again. Two calls in less than an hour is unusual. "Hey what's up?"

"I met Chase and his wife Michelle."

"What did they say?"

"Chase didn't say much. He just sat there quietly listening to my pitch. They signed on with my company for another year."

"Congratulations."

"Thanks. Chase was the least friendly out of all of them. He seems like a glum guy."

"Really, that's not like Chase, that bitch must have changed him for the worse. Chase was always a friendly, talkative type."

"He was glum today and there's no way it's because he knows we're dating. Atlanta's a big city, he can't possibly assume we know each other, let alone you're my girlfriend just because we both live in Atlanta."

"He can't possibly know that." Tess wipes down Brayden's high chair.

"His wife, Michelle, was real friendly though."

"Why? Did she try to jump your bones on an office desk too?" Tess grimaces at the memory of walking in on Michelle and Chase having sex on his desk.

"No." Damien chuckles. "But she told me she was pregnant with their first child not even two minutes after she met me. That's personal info, right?"

"Why would she just blurt that out to a stranger?" Tess wipes down the kitchen table.

"She was saying something about how she couldn't drink coffee because she was pregnant."

"I can't stand that woman." Tess gripes into the phone.

"Eh...don't even think about her and Chase. You've got me."

Tess laughs. "That's true."

"I'll see you when I get home Friday. Call a babysitter. I'll pick you up something sexy from one of the shops on Rodeo Drive."

"I can't wait to see what you pick out for me. I'll see you then." Tess hangs up and strolls over to the bathroom to check on Brayden.

Bj's talking to him. "How 'bout after your bath we have a crawling race across the living room? I think I"ll need a head start though." BJ shampoos Brayden's hair.

"You need a head start?" Tess laughs. "Your legs are four times longer than Brayden's."

"Ya-ya-ya-ya." Brayden splashes his arms in the bathtub.

"Did you ever see this guy speed crawl across the room for a toy? Watch, I'll put his blue ball across the room and see if you can beat him to it." BJ challenges Tess.

"You're on." Tess laughs. She's happy Brayden has a guy like BJ in his life who loves spending time playing with him and she's happy she has a guy like Damien in her life who she has fun spending time with.

* * *

_**REVIEW PLEASE =)**_


	43. Chapter 43

_**CHAPTER 43**_

* * *

It's Monday morning, Andie wakes up alongside Nicky and sighs. "It's so nice to wake up with you." She rubs her palm on his chest. He rolls over on his side to face her. "I'm all yours until Thursday morning." He grabs a cigarette off the bedside table. "And I can finally smoke in bed again now that Hope's not hooked up to oxygen anymore."

"You only smoke in bed after sex and you already smoked last night before we fell asleep. Why are you smoking so early in the morning?"

Nicky puffs on his cigarette. "It calms my nerves."

Andie props herself up on her elbow, facing him to talk. She runs her thumb over his cheek. "What are you nervous about, my prince?"

Nicky exhales his smoke. "Let's see, I've got my band calling me every ten minutes from the road asking questions about song orders and equipment. I've got Benn Golder pressuring me to add more concert dates. I've got the recording studio calling me with questions about producing the album and I've got four little kids at home who all want my undivided attention."

"Don't forget me. I want your attention too." Andie attempts to wink at him.

Nicky breaks out laughing.

"What's so funny?"

"You still can't wink. You used to try that when we first started dating and you looked like a Cyclopes. You still do. Don't wink at anyone, Belle."

"At least I got you to laugh." She rubs his bare belly with her palm. "Just shut off your phone if everyone's bugging you."

"I can't do that. Technically, I'm supposed to be on the road with the band so I have to be available if they have any questions. I have to answer when Benn Golder calls because his company is supporting our tour and album."

"Did you know Benn Golder used to date Michelle?" Andie asks.

"Yeah." Nicky puffs on his cigarette. "You told me that once before."

"I wonder if Chase would still be with Tess if he never met Michelle?"

Nicky puts his cigarette out in the ashtray on the bedside table. "Michelle's the reason Chase and Tess broke up. He cheated on Tess with Michelle. Remember?"

"I miss Tess," Andie sighs. "I always thought she'd move back to LA some day and we'd be friends again but since you said she has a boyfriend in Georgia and a baby I don't think she'll ever come back."

Nicky takes a puff of his cigarette. "Speaking of Tess and her boyfriend, she called me to ask for two more VIP seat tickets to my concert for Thursday night. She specifically asked me not to mention to guy number 2 that she was there with Damien the week before."

"What?" Andie screws up her nose. "Why would she say that?"

"Well, the first guy, Damien, and her were definitely boyfriend-girlfriend. They were all over each other at the concert but it looked like she was pretty cozy with this other guy, BJ, too."

"So, Tess has two boyfriends?"

"That I know of." Nicky laughs. "Who knows if there's more."

"That doesn't seem like Tess." Andie furrows her brow.

"Tess changed. She has a baby now too." Nicky rubs Andie on the thigh.

"I wonder if she even knows who the baby belongs to if she has all these boyfriends?"

"Not our problem, Belle." Nicky moves in to kiss her until they hear. "Waaaaah….Waaaah….Waaaaah." Nicky swings his legs over the side of the bed. "I'll get her."

"Hopie can hold her own bottle now so all you have to do is warm it up and hand it to her." Andie tells Nicky.

Nicky pulls his robe on. "She's come a long way from the days you were afraid to feed her because she'd gag and turn blue."

Andie stretches as she gets out of bed. "She's six months old now, she had her surgery and she's bigger, I can handle her now." Andie pulls her robe on. "I have to wake Harper and Charley up for breakfast. I'll meet you in the kitchen."

* * *

Tess wakes up at Damien's house. She opens her eyes to see Damien already dressed in his jogging clothes. "What time is it?" She asks.

"It's almost eight am. You slept late today." He sits on the bed to tie his shoes.

"That's because Brayden's not here. Brayden is my alarm clock." Tess yawns.

"You wanna go for a jog at the park with me before you go home?"

"Don't you have to work today?" Tess watches him tie his shoes.

"I'm traveling tomorrow to New York for business. I'll be gone all week so they gave me today off. We can spend the day together if you can find someone to watch Brayden."

"I can see if my grandma has any plans for the day. What do you want to do if we spend the day together?"

"After our jog, I figure we could come home and shower together."

"Sounds good so far." Tess smiles.

"Then we could grab some lunch and after that take a relaxing ride down the Chattahoochee river." Damien suggests.

"I'm into that." Tess has a big grin across her face. "I'll find a babysitter for Brayden if my grandma can't do it."

"I'll call ahead and reserve a paddle boat or would you prefer a canoe, kayak or raft?"

"I think a paddle boat would be nice."

"Okay, I'll call now to reserve one while you get ready for our jog in the park." Damien takes out his phone

* * *

Michelle walks into work with Chase. "Isn't that your friend Lila sitting in the waiting room?"

"Yeah, she's due soon. Are you okay with that?" Chase worries about Michelle since she would have been due at the same time as Lila if she didn't miscarry the first time.

Michelle puts her hand on her tummy. "I'm okay as long as I got this little one growing inside me."

Chase stops to tell Michelle. "If Lila's here as a patient that must mean that Addison Montgomery is working today. We should talk to her about being your doctor."

"I guess." Michelle shrugs.

"You should see a doctor, Michelle, you're nine weeks pregnant now. You should have an ultrasound done."

"I don't think it's necessary. I'm taking prenatal vitamins and if the ultrasound shows the baby has no heartbeat there's nothing a doctor could do for me anyway."

"Is that what your afraid of?" Chase rubs her arm. "Are you afraid to have an ultrasound because you think they won't find a heart beat?"

Michelle sighs heavily. "I'm terrified, it's not like it hasn't happened to me before. We never saw a heart beat the last time I was pregnant and I miscarried a week later."

Chase tells Michelle. "All the more reason we should talk to Addison about doing an ultrasound. If there is a problem we don't want to hold on to the dream of this baby. We need to be prepared."

Michelle stares down at the floor.

"Do you want me to talk to Addison for you? I'll see if she can squeeze us in this morning."

Michelle nods her head, slowly.

* * *

Tess and Damien finish their jog at the park. They walk the last lap to cool down.

"It's too bad your grandma couldn't baby-sit today." Damien holds Tess's hand as they walk down the trail.

"I'm so disappointed. I still want to paddle down the river with you another time though."

"Isn't there anyone else you could call to babysit?"

"Nobody I trust to leave Brayden with for the whole day." Michelle responds.

"I'm going to be gone the rest of the week. Maybe we can go Saturday when I get back but it'll be a lot more crowded than if we went on a Monday. Just think we could have the river to ourselves while everyone else is at school and work today."

"Ugh!" Tess groans. "Too bad we can't bring Brayden along."

Damien laughs. "They wouldn't rent a boat to us with a baby, liablity and all, besides it wouldn't exactly be relaxing if we brought your baby along."

"I know." Tess sighs. "It'll be a few more years before Brayden's big enough to do that kind of stuff. So, what are you going to do today instead?"

"I'm still going to take a canoe or kayak down the river." Damien looks straight ahead while they walk.

"By yourself?" Tess asks.

"I'll make a few phone calls to see if anyone's free to go with me." Damien smiles at Tess. "I do have friends you know."

"Guy friends or girl friends?" Tess is pretty sure that a guy who looks like Damien has girls waiting in the wings.

"Both."

"Who are you going to ask?" Tess worries. "A friend of the male or female gender?"

"Whoever answers the phone first and says they can go." Damien looks ahead on the path. "Isn't that your friend BJ jogging up ahead?"

"I wonder what he's doing here at this time in the morning?" Tess looks at her watch. "He should be at work now."

"It must be his day off." Damien suggests.

"I'll meet you at the car. I want to go ask him something."

"Alright."

"And don't make any phone calls to your friends until I meet you at the car!" Tess calls out to him.

"Got ya." Damien walks to the car. He knows exactly what Tess is going to ask of her friend BJ.

Tess jogs up behind BJ. "Hey bud."

"Hey!" BJ smiles at the sight of Tess in front of him. "I called you before to see if you wanted to go for a jog with me but you didn't pick up.'

"I was probably in the shower when you called. I figured I'd just meet you up here."

"You took a shower _before_ your jog?"

"I felt grungy when I woke up this morning. Aren't you working this morning?"

"No. I have oral surgery later in the day."

"What time?"

"Three pm. Why?"

"I need to you to watch Brayden. My grandma can't because it's her book club day with her friends."

"Her book club day?" BJ questions.

"Yeah. The first Monday of the month she meets with her book club for lunch. She'll be home by two pm the latest, but I have to be somewhere earlier. Do you think you can watch Brayden today and bring him back to my grandma's house at two pm?"

"Yeah, but where are you going?"

"A friend asked me out to lunch and to hang out for the afternoon. I love my baby more than anything but every once in a while I need a break for some Tess time."

BJ laughs. "Go have some Tess time. I'll hang out with Bray-Bud today. I'll take him to the park, he's big enough for the baby swing now."

"Thank you so much, BJ." Tess hugs him. "Can I drop Brayden off at your place in about an hour?"

"Yeah, I'll be home before then."

Tess hugs BJ again. "You're the best! I owe you."

"Don't worry about it. That's what friends are for." BJ squeezes Tess tight.

"After tonight, I'll spend the rest of the week at your house, okay?'

"You're not going to get an argument from me."

Tess walks to Damien's car.

"So, did you get him to babysit?" Damien asks.

"He said yes." Tess jumps into Damien's arms. "We can paddle boat together on the Chattahoochee River now!"

"That's a good friend you got there."

"Bj's the best and he's so good with Brayden too. Brayden adores him." Tess beams as she gets into Damien's car.

"Let's go home and take that shower now." Damien squeezes Tess's knee.

* * *

Michelle nervously enters Addison's office. "Good afternoon." Addison shakes Michelle's hand. "Are you nervous?" She asks after feeling Michelle's sweaty palm.

"A little."

"Why?" Addison sits down behind her desk.

"I had a miscarriage the last time I was pregnant. I'm really nervous about this pregnancy. Chase and I haven't told anyone I'm pregnant except his mother."

"I bet Charlotte's excited for you and Chase."

"I don't know about that. She's got her hands full with all Andie's children. I don't know if Charlotte's ready for another grandchild yet."

Addison smiles, "Charlotte and Cooper will love your child as much as they love Andie's children. Your baby will be lucky to have such loving grandparents."

"I hope." Michelle intertwines her hands together nervously.

Chase already filled me in on your dates. I need you to change into this gown and meet me in exam room one." Addison hands Michelle a gown.

Michelle changes into the gown and sits on the table waiting for Addison. She calls Chase. "Where are you? I'm already on the exam table."

"I got held up with a patient. I'll be there as fast as I can. Tell Addison not to start until I get there."

Addison walks in the exam room. "Scoot your bottom to the end of the table and put your feet up here." Addison taps on some stirrups.

"Chase is on his way. Can we wait a few minutes?" Michelle asks.

"I'll start the internal exam now but we'll wait for Chase before the ultrasound." Addison gently glides a speculum into Michelle and cranks it. She shines a lamp on her. Michelle feels tears come to her eyes. "Are you okay?" Addison asks. "This shouldn't hurt."

"It doesn't hurt." Michelle sniffles. "I just hate internals."

"Don't we all." Addison assures her. "You're doing good. Your cervix is closed which is a good sign. The cervix opens up before a miscarriage."

"I'm only nine weeks pregnant. The cervix still has three more weeks to open up before I'm considered safe."

"Think positive, Michelle." Addison explains. "It's not uncommon for a woman to miscarry the first pregnancy. Most of them go on to have healthy pregnancies after."

Chase comes in the room. Michelle grabs his hand and holds it tight. He sees the tears I her eyes. "What's wrong?" He asks in a panic stricken voice.

"Nothing's wrong." Addison tells Chase. "She's fine."

"I just hate internals." Michelle tells Chase.

"Everything's within normal limits for an early pregnancy." Addison gets up from her stool. "You can scoot up now, Michelle. I'm ready to do your ultrasound."

Michelle squeezes Chase's hand tight. "Pray we see a heart beat this time."

"We should." Chase tells her. "The heart starts to beat in the sixth week and you're nine weeks."

Addison rubs the gel on Michelle's lower abdomen before sliding the transducer around. "Here we go. You look to be about nine weeks along."

"Can you see the heart beat?" Michelle asks, anxiously.

"Right here." Addison focuses in on the heart which Michelle and Chase gaze at.

"And we have a heartbeat!" Chase announces.

Michelle starts to tear up again.

"Why are you crying now?" Chase asks.

"These are happy tears." She smiles at Chase.

Addison hands her a tissue. "Expect lots of tear the first trimester, thanks to your hormones."

"I've been feeling good so far." Michelle tells Addison. "I haven't had any morning sickness. I can eat or smell anything without feeling sick."

Addison prints off some sono pictures. "Not everyone experiences morning sickness, consider yourself lucky." Addison hands her the pictures. "Everything looks normal. I'll see you again in one month for your next appointment and we'll do another sono at eighteen weeks."

Michelle sits up. "Thank you, Dr. Montgomery."

"Thanks, Addison." Chase shakes her hand. "Oh, and don't tell my dad Michelle's pregnant yet. My momma already knows so you can talk to her about it if you want."

"Why don't you want to tell your dad?" Addison asks, curiously.

"My dad has loose lips. He'll let is slip out to Aunt Violet and she'll let it slip out to Lila... who'll tell Marley... who'll tell Noah ...who'll tell Drew... who'll tell …-"

"Okay." Addison holds her hand up "I get it. I won't say anything, cross my heart."

"Thanks." Michelle and Chase both tell Addison again before she leaves the exam room.

"I'm so happy." Chase looks at the sono pictures.

"Me too." Michelle hugs Chase while she glances at the sono pictures now. She can't help thinking about the sono pictures that Tess left for Chase on his desk almost two years ago. She feels guilty now. She squeezes him even tighter knowing she's going to lose him if he ever finds out what she did.

* * *

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	44. Chapter 44

**CHAPTER 44**

* * *

Andie knocks on the door of Chase's office at Surfside Wellness Center.

"Come in." Her brother calls out.

"Hi." Andie smiles. "Hope wanted to visit her Uncle Chase while we were here."

Chase takes the six and a half month old baby from Andie. "How did her appointment with Jolie go?"

"Good." Andie nods before dropping the heavy diaper bag down on the floor. '"Jolie says she's healing nicely. She's fifteen pounds now so she's gained weight since the surgery but she's still considered underweight for her age. Jolie wants to wait until she catches up to her goal weight before she pulls the g-tube out of her stomach."

"I agree with Jolie. Hope's long. She's going to be tall like Nicky but she's lean. She needs to catch up." Chase gives his medical advice as a pediatrician.

"Well, she was born with a heart defect that made her too weak to eat and a cleft lip and palate that also made it hard for her to eat. She's used to being fed primarily by the stomach tube. I think she's doing pretty damn good considering the odds she was up against since birth." Andie defends her baby.

"Whoa. Stop roaring at me momma bear." Chase teases. "I was just giving my professional opinion that she should keep up the tube feedings until she's at the right weight for her age. At this rate _my_ baby's going to be bigger than Hope by the time it's six months old."

"Whoa..-" Andie asks. "What baby?"

"Oh shit, I was telling Addison that dad had a big mouth and would slip if we told him and here I go and slip." Chase rubs his hand over his head.

"Is Michelle pregnant?"

"You can't tell anyone. She's afraid she might have another miscarriage. We don't want to say anything until she's at least twelve weeks."

"How far along is she?"

"Almost ten weeks."

Andie nods. "Two more weeks to go! Congrats little bro." Andie hugs Chase.

"Don't tell anyone."

"Cross my heart." Andie makes a cross with her finger over the left side of her chest.

Chase plays with Hope's hands. "Enjoy it while it lasts kid because you're not going to be the baby for long. Nana and Grandpa are going to have a new baby to fuss over."

Andie furrows her brow. It never occurred to her before now that Chase may be jealous of how much time their parents spend with Andie's children.

Andie sighs and asks him something that has been weighing on her mind. "Do you still think about Tess?"

"Every day."

"I thought so by the way you reacted at dinner when Nicky said she took her boyfriend to see his concert."

"Yeah, I'm not crazy about that guy."

Andie snickers. "You don't even know him."

"I met him. He's our drug rep. He's an arrogant, over confidant body builder."

"Are you sure you don't just hate him because he's dating Tess?"

"She had _his_ baby!" Chase stresses before he puts Hope down in her stroller.

Andie shakes her head. "I don't know about that."

"What do you mean?" Nicky furrows his brow.

Andie explains. "Nicky said Tess called him the following week asking for two more tickets to his concert. She told Nicky not to tell guy number 2 that she was at the concert the week before with guy number 1."

Chase raises one eyebrow. "She's playing them? That doesn't sound like Tess at all."

"I know but Tess also has a baby now which was a surprise to all of us. We don't know that the drug rep is the baby's father. It could be guy number 2 or even another guy she didn't take to the concert. Tess gave up her Ob-Gyn residency. That doesn't sound like Tess either." Andie points out. "Tess is not Tess anymore."

"I know." Chase shakes his head. "It's the exact opposite of what Tess wanted to do with her life. She wanted to finish her residency and establish her career before having kids. It's like she went wild after she left LA."

"You hurt her real bad, Chase, when she caught you with your pants down with Michelle. And then you went and married Michelle. She had to be so hurt. She planned to spend the rest of her life with you. I guess when you blew that dream you blew all her future dreams, she gave up and went loose, got knocked up by some random guy and is playing the field now. I'm worried about her." Andie clenches her jaw.

"I don't know what to do, Andie. Tell me how to fix this." Chase paces across his office.

"Go to Georgia and talk to Tess. Find out what's going on with her."

"Tess isn't going to want to see me. I'm sure she hates me now." Chase continues to pace.

"She's destroying her life, Chase. She's destroying her life long dream to become a doctor." Andie insists." It's like she's given up. Momma told me Tess's momma has breast cancer. I'm sure that's making things worse for her too. She needs you."

"If I go to Georgia, what do I say to her? Tell her I'm sorry this happened and I want things to go back to the way they were before I met Michelle?" Chase runs his hand across his forehead. "I can't do that. Michelle is pregnant with my baby." Chase shakes his head. "This is a mess. I screwed the lives of the two women in my life."

"How did you screw up Michelle's life? She's happy as a pig in mud."

"I married her when I'm still in love with Tess and now she's having my baby." Chase sits at his desk. "I wanna go to Georgia and get down on my knees begging Tess for forgiveness but I can't do that to Michelle. She didn't do anything wrong besides love me. I can't hurt Michelle like I hurt Tess."

Hope starts to fuss in her stroller. "I'm sorry, Chase. I don't know what to tell you. I wish I had another answer for you."

Chase hugs Andie "Thanks for stopping by to see me."

"Anytime little bro." Andie hugs Chase before pushing a fussy Hope Charlotte out of his office in her stroller.

* * *

Michelle takes Ruby to the mall to shop for some new clothes. Ruby slurps on her mango slushy before telling Michelle. "My dad said I could charge up to three hundred dollars on this credit card for clothes."

Michelle answers, "it sounds like a lot but once we buy you a pair of nice boots and a couple new outfits you'll be surprised how fast we'll blow through the money." Michelle finishes her slice of Sbarro's pizza. "Are you ready to shop?" She rises to her feet.

Ruby follows Michelle through the mall. She notices Michelle walk extra slowly through the infant department looking at the cute little baby clothes. A tall blonde man approaches her. "Michelle! What are you doing here?" Benn Golder asks.

"I'm shopping with my friend Ruby. What are you doing here?"

"My son seems to have had a growth spurt and outgrown all his clothes. We went on a shopping spree in the little boys department." He holds up a large shopping bag.

"Hello." Michelle smiles at the little boy who was the reason Benn broke up with her. Benn got his wife pregnant with the boy while having an affair with Michelle breaking his promise to leave his wife after he got her pregnant.

"Hi." The little boy peeks out from behind Benn's leg.

"I promised him some ice cream. Would you ladies like to join us? My treat."

"We just ate." Michelle responds.

"I'd love to have some ice cream." Ruby tells Michelle. "I was looking at the waffle cones while we were at the food court but I didn't want to be rude and ask you for one."

Michelle shakes her head. "Ice cream it is."

The four of them walk to the food court. Ruby walks ahead with Benn's little boy while Michelle and Benn follow a few feet behind them. "So, how are you doing?" Benn asks.

"I'm pregnant but we're not announcing it until I'm twelve weeks this time."

"Congratulations."

"Thanks. How are you doing?"

"Business wise I'm going great. Broken Spell is raking in the money for the record company. I'm the one who pitched them to the big boss so I got a nice raise."

"That's great."

"But my personal life is lonely. Any chance you'll come back to me?" Benn teases.

"I'm pregnant. It'd break Chase's heart if I left him for you."

"Does Chase know that you're still in love with me?" Benn asks.

"Arrogant much?" Michelle teases.

"I only broke up with you because my wife was pregnant. We were still in love at the time as I recall. Are you still?"

"Maybe." Michelle shrugs. "But nothing could ever come of it because I'm married to Chase and having _his_ baby."

"Chase must be excited to be a dad. I know I love being a dad. My son is all I have right now. I don't know what I'd do without him." Benn tells her.

Michelle tenses up with tears in her eyes.

"What's wrong?"

"If I tell you something do you swear to me you'll never tell anyone?"

"Scouts honor." Benn holds up his right hand.

"Swear on your son's life that you will never tell anyone what I tell you."

"I swear." Benn makes a cross over his heart.

Ruby waits up for them now. "Which ice cream place do you want to go to?"

"That one is good." Benn points and hands Ruby a twenty dollar bill. "Here, buy whatever you like for yourself and my little man. Michelle and I will be sitting down in that booth talking."

Ruby notices that Michelle looks upset. "Do you want some ice cream?"

"No, thank you." Michelle fakes a smile.

"Okay, I'll take the ankle biter to get our ice-cream and we'll sit in that booth over there." Ruby knows the adults want to talk in private.

"That would be great, Ruby." Benn smiles.

After Ruby walks away, Benn and Michelle sit down in a booth. Benn takes both her hands in his. "Tell me what's wrong."

Michelle take a deep breath and lets it out. "I did something bad, something really horrible and I don't know what to do about it."

"What'd you do, Michelle?"

"Remember I told you Chase's fiancé caught us in the act in his office and that's why she broke the engagement and left town?"

"Aha." Benn nods.

"I lied. She was mad at him for cheating on her but she left him a letter about two weeks later."

"What did the letter say?" Benn asks.

"She told him she was pregnant in the letter and left him some sonogram pictures of the baby. She said she wanted to work things out with him for the baby's sake. She left her engagement ring on the desk with the letter. In the letter she said for him to meet her at Giorgio's that Friday night if he wanted to work things out. I took the letter and the sono pictures but I left the engagement ring sitting alone on his desk. Chase thinks she just left him the ring to break the engagement and left town without even wanting to try and work it out."

"Why would you do something like that?"

"I was falling in love with Chase. He was having issues with Tess at the time. She wouldn't commit to a wedding date and she wanted to postpone having kids until she established her career. Chase didn't want to wait that long. He would complain about Tess to me so I figured Chase would be happier with me, but he's not. Sometimes, I can't sleep at night thinking about what I did. I don't know what to do. Chase will hate me if I tell him the truth."

"So, come back to me." Benn squeezes her hand.

"I can't. I'm having Chase's baby."

"But you said he's still in love with Tess. He can get back with her, you can get back with me and you could share custody of this baby." Benn suggests.

"It's not that easy, Benn. Tess has moved on. She dating some good-looking body builder dude now. I think she's raising the baby with him. And I could never let Chase know I took that letter, he'd hate me for life. He'd probably try to take full custody of this baby from me, calling me unfit for stealing the letter."

"What did you do with the letter?"

"I have it locked up in a box in my attic at home."

"What if Chase opens the box?"

"I have the key. I keep it on my keychain. Besides, Chase has no reason to go in that box. It's all my personal stuff."

"Can I ask you a question?"

Michelle nods.

"Why didn't you burn the letter and ultrasound photos. Why would you save the evidence?"

"I don't know." Michelle shakes her head. "I can't bring myself to do that. I'm hoping that after Chase and I have our own baby, I could put the letter and the sono pictures somewhere in the office so someone will find it and give it to him. I just don't want him to know I took it. I want him to think it got misplaced by the janitor or I don't know. I want him to see the letter but not until after I give him a child."

"Because Tess won't have an advantage over you if you both have a child with him?"

"Right. If I left the letter somewhere in the office now and he finds it and God forbid I lose this baby I know Chase would leave me and go back with Tess. It wouldn't be so easy for him to leave me if I have his baby too. I'm his wife, Tess isn't."

Benn lets out a big sigh. "You got yourself into one hell of a mess, Michelle."

"I know but please tell me you understand why I did it. Tell me I'm not a horrible bitch."

Benn squeezes Michelle's hand. "You're not a horrible bitch."

"Thank you." Michelle's eyes tear up.

"You know I'll always have your back, kid. If you need anything, even just to talk, call me."

"I will." Michelle wipes her eyes.

"Your mascara is leaking."

"Damn, it's supposed to be waterproof."

"Let me get it." Benn licks his thumb and wipes away her smeared mascara.

Ruby comes back over to the table. "We're done with our ice cream. Is everything okay here?"

"Yes" Michelle shakes it off. "Benn was just telling me a sad story. Shall we go shopping now?"

"I'm ready." Ruby smiles.

Michelle hugs Benn goodbye. "Call me." Benn tells her.

Michelle walks beside Ruby as they window shop. "How do you know that man?" Ruby asks.

"Benn was my boyfriend before I met Chase. Chase knows about him." Michelle tells Ruby. "They've met."

"It's okay. It's none of my business." Ruby can't wait to go home and tell Drew the events of her shopping trip with Michelle.

* * *

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	45. Chapter 45

_**CHAPTER 45**_

* * *

It's two weeks later on a Sunday evening, Noah and Marley are home from school on break. The walk hand in hand down the hospital corridor to room 213. Noah knocks.

"Come in." Lila calls out.

They enter the room to find Lila in her hospital bed holding her newborn daughter. Dylan's sitting beside her.

"Congratulations! She's beautiful." Marley hugs Lila. "I can't believe you're a mom."

"And you're a dad." Noah high fives Dylan.

"So how's it feel to be parents?" Marley asks.

"Hard to say." Dylan answers. "She was just born yesterday."

"I'm loving it." Lila tells them.

"I'm happy to have a kid." Dylan nods. "I never know when my Hodgkin's will come back so this is one more thing I can notch off my belt that I accopmplished. Next, I want to climb to the top of Mount Everest."

"Are you serious, dude?" Noah asks.

"Hell yeah. I've been practicing. I need to get better at it before I'm ready for that trek but I'm gonna do it one day before I get sick again. I went skydiving last month, that was a rush." Dylan tells them.

"I thought you were cancer free?" Marley asks her half-brother. "You've been in remission over ten years."

"You never know with cancer. I'm lucky that I've lived to be twenty-five years old. Having Hodgkin's has pushed me to live my life to the fullest. I have nothing to lose."

"You mind if I take this guy for a walk?" Noah asks Lila.

"Sure, go ahead." Lila nods. "Marley and I can catch up."

Marley waits for the boys to leave then asks, "what's going on with you and Dylan?"

"Nothing, except he's Clove's father."

"Is that the baby's name? Clove?"

"Yeah, do you like it?"

"It's pretty just like her." Marley looks at the little baby girl with the spikey blonde hair. "She looks like Dylan."

Lila admires her baby. "I know, she's so cute. I can't believe she's mine."

Marley looks at the sleeping baby. "Look at her hair. It looks like you spiked it up."

Lila laughs. "I didn't spike it, honest. That's just the way it grows."

Marley chuckles. "Figures Dylan would have a baby with a cool hair-doo."

"Yep. I think Dylan will be a good dad to Clove. He's excited about it." Lila responds.

"So, now that you two have a baby together, do you think he'll move back to LA and you two can be a couple?" Marley asks.

Lila explains. "Clove should know her father but Dylan and I are just good friends, nothing more."

Marley looks at the baby. "Your mom must be excited."

"She is. She took Rosie shopping to pick out something for herself and for Clove. She should be here soon."

Marley shakes her head. "Rosie is going to have to share her grandma now."

"Rosie has Addison as a grandma and let me tell you Addison spoils that child."

Marley asks "Was your mom there for the birth?"

"Aha, she was my birth coach. She came to the birthing classes with me since Dylan was in Texas."

Marley shrugs. "At least Dylan made it for here for the birth."

"He happened to be home on his break from school but it was great to have both Dylan and my mother there."

"Is your mom okay with Dylan?"

"She hasn't said anything but I think it bothers her that Dylan knocked me up and lives his own life in Texas doing who knows what with who knows who while I was pregnant with his kid in LA."

"And it doesn't bother _you_ that he's probably got a girl in Texas?"

"I've had a crush on Dylan since we were kids but Dylan's like your dad. He's a ladies man. I don't think he's ever settle down with one woman."

"My dad was married to my mom for fourteen years." Marley reminds.

"But were they happy or did they just stay together because of you and Cole Jr?"

"I think it was both." Marley shrugs. "My parents fought about Amelia and Dylan a lot but there were plenty of happy times too. We had good times as a family."

"I don't need a man to be happy. I'm good with Clove." Lila explains. "I'm not mad about Dylan's lifestyle. Look at the way Clove was conceived. We were all drunk and high that day; we had a sheet orgy at my house during Chase and Michelle's wedding reception. It's not like Dylan and I were even a couple then."

"As long as you're happy." Marley nods.

"I am." Lila looks down at her baby.

Noah and Dylan walk outside to the parking lot. Dylan offers Noah some weed. "I don't have cigars but I have this."

"No, dude, I quit that stuff." Noah passes.

"C'mon." Dylan hands him a joint anyway, "Celebrate with me. I'm a dad."

Noah takes a drag of the joint. "Don't tell Marley. She'll kill me."

"Ba, ha, ha!" Dylan laughs. "They say before you marry a girl you should get to know her mother first because she's going to turn out just like her. You got yourself a Jolie Jr."

"Nah! Marley's nothing like her mother. She just doesn't like to smoke weed anymore. I mean look what happened to you and Lila. You ended up as parents from our weed smoking."

"I'm okay with it." Dylan shrugs. "I'm twenty-five. That's a good time to have a kid. I'm old enough to take care of her and still young enough to be able to run around with her."

"So, you're into this daddy role?"

"Yeah, I'm moving back to LA so I can be part of her life. I'd miss too much if I stayed in Texas."

"What about Lila? Are you two a couple now?"

"No," Dylan tells Noah. "I've been in Texas her whole pregnancy. We haven't spent much time together but we'll see what happens after I move back to LA. Maybe? We'll see."

"Good for you. Congrats!" Noah puffs on the joint.

* * *

Charlotte arrives home from work and walks into the kitchen.

"Dinner's almost ready, Chief, how was your day?" Cooper's tossing a salad.

Charlotte counts the plates set at the table. "What are we feeding an army tonight?"

"It's Sunday evening, Andie's picking Nicky up at the airport and bringing him and the kids over for dinner. Noah's home from school and he invited Marley here to eat. Chase and Michelle are coming and Drew invited Ruby."

"Doesn't that girl ever eat at her own house? She's always here." Charlotte washes her hands.

"She's a good kid, Drew really likes her."

"Yeah, but don't her parents ever want to see her?"

"Drew said her mum lives in Australia and her father travels for work." Cooper wrinkles his nose. "It's sad but the kid is pretty much on her own. Her father supports her financially but that's about it."

"Poor kid, no wonder she's always at our house."

"Our kids are lucky, Chief, and there was a day when you thought you weren't going to be a good mother."

Ruby and Drew waltz into the room. "We're staving, dad. Is dinner ready yet?

"It is. We're just waiting for everybody to show up."

"G'day. ..Dr. King…." Ruby greets.

"Good day to you to." Cooper smiles at the chubby fourteen year old girl.

"I like your outfit." Charlotte compliments Ruby who usually sports a t-shirt and jeans with tennis shoes. Today she's wearing a neon pink and black fitted shirt with black Capri's and sandals.

"Thank you. Michelle took me to the mall to buy clothes."

"Looks like you and Michelle did good." Charlotte smiles.

"Speak of the devil." Cooper calls out when Chase and Michelle walk into the kitchen.

"I hope dinner's ready because we're starving." Chase greets his parents.

"Find a seat before everyone else gets here." Charlotte instructs them.

"Who are we waiting on?" Chase asks.

Cooper sets the food out. "Andie, Nicky and the kids should be here any minute and Noah and Marley went to visit Lila at the hospital. I told them to be home by six for dinner." Cooper looks at his watch.

"I heard Lila had a little girl?" Michelle asks.

"That's right." Cooper responds. "Her name is Violet Clove but they're going to call her Clove."

"Lord knows we don't need two Violet's." Charlotte adds.

"Be nice, Chief. Violet's your friend too."

Andie walks in the kitchen with Nicky and the kids. "What's for dinner?" Nicky looks at the table.

"Nice greeting, Nick." Cooper raises his eyebrows.

"Sorry." Nicky tries again. "Hello everyone. Hope your are all well. Now what's for dinner?"

"Homemade vegetable lasagna." Cooper answers.

Andie gives her parents each a kiss hello before placing Hope in the high chair and Michael Nikolas in his booster seat.

Noah and Marley walk in next.

"It's about time." Cooper tells them.

"Sit down." Charlotte tells Noah and Marley. "You're late. We were fixin' to eat without you."

"Sorry, momma. We went so visit Lila and Clove."

"How are they?" Andie asks.

"They're great. Clove is a beautiful baby. You should see her, she has spikey blonde hair and she looks just like Dylan." Marley tells everyone as they pass their plates to Cooper to fill with the vegetable lasagna.

"All babies are beautiful." Charlotte pours chocolate milk for all the kids.

"Not Hope!" Harper calls out. "Hope was an ugly baby when she was born."

Nicky scolds his daughter. "Don't talk about your little sister like that if you still want me to take you to Disneyland tomorrow. You can stay home with Nan and Grandpa while your momma and I take the boys and Hope there."

"Sorry, poppa." Harper aoplogizes so she can go to Disney.

Marley looks at Hope. "Hope's cleft palate repair came out great. You can hardly see the scar."

Charlotte sticks a fork in her vegetable lasagna. "Your momma did a remarkable job with the surgery. That scar will fade even more over time."

"Jolie's the best plastic surgeon I know." Cooper sips his beer with dinner. "She's always been a perfectionist."

"Not just in surgery. She's a perfectionist at home too." Marley adds.

"And she demands her kids be the same way, that's the problem." Noah tells them.

"I try." Marley eats her lasagna. "But Cole Jr has always beat me out as the favorite."

Andie laughs. "I'm the favorite in this family."

Nicky feeds Hope some lasagna. "I thought Chase was the favorite?"

Charlotte puts her glass of water down. "How many times do I need to tell y'all we don't have any favorites."

"We love all our children and grandchildren equally." Cooper clarifies.

"About that, I have an announcement to make." Chase calls attention to himself. "We're going to have another member of the family in about six more months. Michelle is twelve weeks pregnant."

"Congratulations!" Everyone says at about the same time.

"That'll be five grandchildren for you, Nan." Harper tells Charlotte. "And one cousin for me." Harper's excited. "I've always wanted a cousin. All my friends at school have cousins except me."

"Well, now you'll have one, Harper bopper." Cooper smiles at his almost ten year old granddaughter.

"Do you have any cousins, Momma?" Harper asks Andie.

Andie swallows before answering. Charlotte, Cooper and Nicky all stay quiet and wait for her answer. "My cousins all live in Alabama. I don't see them much."

"Who are they?" Harper's interested.

"They're the children of Nan's brothers; Uncle Duke and Uncle Landry." Andie answers.

Charlotte joins in. "Let's see, there's Bryce, Will and Savannah and I can't forget Duke's girls - Sailor and Shyanne. Duke had them late in life so his girls are about your age, Harper."

"Can I meet them?"

"If you're good for your momma and poppa, maybe Nan will plan a trip to Alabama this summer…just you and me Harper." Charlotte scoops up some lasagna.

"Yay! I can't wait." Harper claps, excitedly.

"Do you have any cousins, poppa?" Harper asks Nicky.

Nicky responds. "My father's sister has two kids but they moved back to Greece when I was your age, so I don't really know them well."

"So, you don't have any cousins in America?" Harper asks Nicky.

Nicky hesitates. "Uh...No."

Drew shakes his head. "When are you going to tell her? She's almost ten."

"Stop." Andie glares at Drew.

"Tell me what?" Harper asks.

"Enough!" Charlotte glares at Drew now. "Change the subject."

Cooper starts. "How was your day at the hospital, Chief?"

"Busy. It seems everyone was at the hospital today for visiting hours. Violet and Pete were there to visit Lila along with Amelia, Cole, Sheldon and Lucas and Danielle."

"Well, they're all grandparents now. Pass the bread." Cooper tells Noah.

"Clove's a lucky little girl. She has a lot of people who love her." Charlotte grabs the bread from Noah before Cooper gets it.

"Hey!" Cooper complains.

"I worked today. I get it first." Charlotte grins. "Oh and Tess's bother and father were up at the hospital to visit Tess's momma. She isn't doing well."

"Isn't she in remission from breast cancer?" Marley asks.

"She came out of remission a few months ago. The cancer came back with a vengeance. She's been going downhill fast." Charlotte explains.

"That's so sad." Marley looks at Noah thinking about the conversation they had with Dylan about his Hodgkin's earlier.

"I guess Tess will be back to LA soon to visit her momma." Cooper butters his bread. "If her momma is that sick I would expect her to come.'

Nicky adds. "Tess isn't working so there's really no excuse for her not to come."

Yay!" Harper claps. "I miss Aunt Tess. I can't wait to see her again."

"She's not going to come see us, peanut." Andie tells Harper.

"Because Chase hurt her pretty bad." Drew says as he eats his lasagna.

"What did you do to her Uncle Chase?" Harper asks. "Did you hit her or kick her?"

"No." Chase grimaces at Drew for saying that in front of Harper. "I would never hit or kick Tess."

"There are other ways to hurt people." Drew explains to Harper. "He hurt her mentally, not physically."

"What does that mean?" Harper looks at Chase. "What did you do to Aunt Tess to hurt her mentally?"

Chase shakes his head at Drew. "What's up with you tonight? First the cousin thing and now this!"

Drew defends. "It's not right the way you all keep the kid in the dark. She's going to find this stuff out one day. The truth always comes out."

Charlotte notices Michelle looks very uncomfortable with the discussion about Tess.

"Enough!" Charlotte scolds them both. "Nicky! Tell us about your tour. That's all we're going to talk about until dinner is over." Charlotte looks around the table, instructing all of them.

Nicky starts to talk about his tour. Chase gets up to leave the kitchen. Michelle gets up after him.

"No. you stay and eat; you're pregnant, you need to finish your meal." Chase tells Michelle before he walks out the back door.

Drew follows Chase out to the driveway.

"What's your problem?" Chase asks Drew.

Drew shrugs. "I believe in honesty. I hate secrets, just a pet peeve of mine. Andie and Nicky are keeping the cousin issue a secret from their kids. What do you think is going to happen if Harper finds out about it when she's twenty instead of growing up knowing the truth?"

"I agree. If they keep it a secret it makes it more of a big deal _but_ Harper doesn't need to know I cheated on Tess with Michelle." Chase tosses s basketball to Drew.

Drew explains, "Harper adored Tess. Tess was there for Harper's birth. She's always been a part of Harper's life. The kid doesn't understand why Tess would just disappear. It's not fair or else she's going to think any one of us can just take off one day and she'll never see us again."

Chase sighs. "I never gave it much thought how Tess's leaving didn't just hurt me, it hurt the whole family."

Drew scores a basket. "There's something else I need to tell you."

Chase dribbles the ball. "What?"

"Do you know that guy Benn Golder, the record producer for Nicky's band?"

"I know him." Chase shoots the ball. "What about him?"

"Did you know that he's Michelle's ex?"

"I know." Chase dribbles the ball." I've met him a few times. He took his son up to Surfside Wellness Center. He said he wanted me to be his son's pediatrician. Turns out it was a ruse just so he could check me out since I married Michelle. The kid's mom already has a pediatrician for her son."

"He was at the mall shopping with his son the day Michelle took Ruby there to shop."

"So," Chase takes another shot at the basket.

"So, Ruby said they told her to sit in a different booth with the little kid to eat ice cream while Michelle and Benn sat in their own booth. She said whatever they were talking about looked intense. Michelle was crying and Benn was holding her hand."

"I trust Michelle." Chase shoots a basket. "I'll talk to her about it later."

"Just wanted you to know because I despise secrets." Drew scores a basket. "Secrets destroy people."

* * *

_**REVIEW =)**_


	46. Chapter 46

_**CHAPTER 46**_

* * *

_**Two weeks later-**_

Michelle comes home from work. Chase is sitting on the couch. "Why are you so late?" He asks.

Michelle holds up a pink and blue shopping bag with multi-colored graphics of baby bears on it. "I went shopping for the baby." She pulls out a little pink dress.

"Michelle, you're only fourteen weeks pregnant, there's no way you can know that you're having a girl."

"I have a feeling but just in case…-" Michelle pulls out a baby boy's sailor suit.

"Michelle?" Chase screws up his face.

Michelle explains, "we're going to find out the sex next month when I go for my ultrasound. I'll leave the tags on the outfits and return the one we don't need." She pulls a white kimono with yellow ducks on it and a teal kimono out of the bag next. "These are keepers. A boy or girl could wear these." She pulls a yellow rattle, a multicolored play matt and a white teddy bear wearing a red bow out of a larger shopping bag. "These are all keepers too." Michelle shows them to Chase.

Chase shakes his head.

"What's wrong?"

"I don't want you to jinx the pregnancy by buying all this stuff so early." Chase shakes the yellow rattle.

"But I'm fourteen weeks. I'm two weeks past the miscarriage danger zone."

"But it's still early on, I think we should wait until you're six months before we start buying anything for the baby."

"Party pooper." Michelle takes the baby things away from him and puts them back in the bag.

"How come you didn't tell me you ran into Benn Golder at the mall two weeks ago?"

"Ruby told you?"

"No. Ruby told Drew and Drew told me. Why were you crying when you were talking to Benn?"

Michelle sighs. "Hormones, I cry easy since I've been pregnant."

"What were you and Benn talking about?"

"Same old stuff. He wants me back. I told him no. I told him I'm pregnant with your child and that's it. He knows I'm never leaving you. I love you." She kisses Chase on the lips.

"Why didn't you tell me you saw him?"

"What would be the point? It would only upset you and I ran into him accidentally. It wasn't a planned meeting. Okay?"

"Okay but next time you run into Benn can you please tell me about it?"

"Yes." Michelle hugs Chase.

"Because I hate secrets." Chase tells her and Michelle's heart drops into her stomach because she's been keeping a huge secret from him for nearly two years now.

* * *

Tess rings the doorbell at Damien's house. "I scored a babysitter for the whole night." She tells him as he lets her in.

"Great. I just finished making dinner." He hands her a glass of wine before he strolls into the kitchen to set out the dinner plates. Tess's phone beeps. She takes a deep breath; it's her father. She knows it's not good news. She talks on the phone a few minutes. Damien comes out of the kitchen, he notices that she's crying. "What's wrong?"

"My father just called. My momma took a turn for the worse. They don't think she has much longer. He wants me to come to LA to say goodbye."

Damien sits down next to Tess. "I knew she had cancer but I didn't realize she was that bad off."

"She's dying. We were hoping for a miracle but she's been gradually getting worse. The doctors told my dad she doesn't have much time left which means I have to go to LA which I've been dreading for so many reasons."

"Because of Chase?" Damien asks.

"Because I don't want to run into Chase which is a possibility because he's a doctor and my mother is in the hospital."

"But he's a pediatrician, he wouldn't be on your mother's floor."

"With my luck, I'd end up getting stuck in an elevator with him but I have to go say goodbye to my momma."

"I'll go with you." Damien offers.

"Really? You would do that for me?"

"I'll go do some inventory at Surfside Wellness. I'll survey the doctors about our supplies then I can write it off as a business trip."

"That'd be great. I could use the support."

"You got me." Damien gives her a kiss on the lips.

* * *

Charlotte comes home from work, she drops her purse on the table. Cooper waltzes up to her with an apron on. "Dinner's ready." He gives her a little hello kiss. Charlotte follows him into the kitchen.

Charlotte looks around. "It's just the two us us?"

"Just the two of us." Cooper pulls out the chair for her to sit.

"Where is everyone?" Charlotte washes her hands in the sink before she takes a seat.

"Drew and Ruby went for a surf ride at sunset, Noah and Marley decided to join them."

"What about Andie and the kids?"

"It's Monday night, Nicky's home. They went out to Red Robin for dinner with the kids."

Charlotte quirks an eyebrow. "Andie and Nicky took all four kids out to eat. God Bless the other diners at that restaurant tonight."

Cooper laughs.

"What about Chase?" Charlotte sips her water.

"I suppose he's spending a quiet night at home with his pregnant wife."

Charlotte looks around. "It's so quiet and empty here without the kids."

Cooper grabs a chicken drumstick out of Charlotte's hand. He starts packing up the oven fried chicken and biscuits he made Charlotte for dinner.

"What are you doing?"

"We're going to have a picinic on the beach and enjoy the sunset-just the two of us. Go put your bathing suit on."

"And you're planning on a sunset swim?" Charlotte says, sarcastically

"It's a nice night out. We might want to get our feet wet after we eat."

"Alright." Charlotte heads upstairs to change. It's been a long time since her and Cooper had a night out by themselves like this. She's looking forward to a picnic on the beach under the sunset with her hubby.

* * *

Marley and Ruby sit on an oversized beach towel in the sand watching Noah and Drew surf. "Drew's pretty good." Marley comments.

"Yeah, I taught him to surf quite well." Ruby agrees.

"You taught Drew to surf?"

"It wasn't too much yakka. He skateboards so he already has the balance. He just needed to get over his fear of being swallowed up by a wave."

"How long have you been surfing?" Marley asks.

"My mum started me when I was an ankle biter so I'd have no fear of the ocean."

"That's a beautiful sunset." Marley points to the sky.

"Yeah. Drew and I always surf at sunset."

"Why so late? School's out for the summer. Why don't you come during the day? " Marleys sifts some sand through her fingers.

"Look at me." Ruby tells Marley. "People gawk at me in a bathing suit. I feel like a zoo elephant if I ever come to the beach during the day."

"That's a shame." Marley shakes her head.

"Yeah." Ruby nods. "I know it shouldn't bother me but it hurts. Drew isn't like them though. He sees me as more than just a fat girl."

"Drew's parents raised him right." Marley makes circles in the sand with her finger."They raised all their children right. They should have had more children. We need more nice people in the world."

"I agree." Ruby draws circles in the sand now too. "So, Drew tells me you and Noah have been together since you were kids?"

"We were friends as kids because our parents were friends but we started dating when we were about your age. If I ever lost Noah it would be like someone cut off both my right arm and leg."

Ruby laughs.

"I'm not kidding. Noah and I know each other inside and out. We hardly ever fight."

"You're like two peas in pod."

"Exactly. We bonded even more because we were both the black sheep in our family."

"How so?" Ruby asks.

"My mother's a perfectionist, well, she still is. My brothers were A students who never got into any trouble." Marley sighs. "I was the bad seed according to my mother."

"What did you do?" Ruby brushes some sand off her foot.

"Let's see." Marley thinks back. "We got caught smoking weed, we took out Dr. King's car and backed it into my mother's designer mailbox. We helped our friend post a picture of a classmate in her underwear on you tube."

Ruby laughs. "You were hooligans."

"We weren't that bad. We just weren't perfect." Marley continues. "You see, in Noah's family Andie was always special because she's their only daughter _and _she's the firstborn, Chase is the oldest son and Drew was the cute little baby of the family until Andie started having kids."

"Yes, I know." Ruby nods. "The oldies spend a lot of time with Andie's children. Drew's on his own a lot, like me."

"Yeah well." Marley explains. "Nicky's on the road a lot so Andie needs their help. Hope has health issues and the boys are rambunctious." Marley swallows. "So, Drew feels neglected?"

"Yeah, but Drew knows the ankle biters need to be spoon fed and their nappys changed often and of course you can't take your eye off any of them a minute or they'll jump off the roof."

Marley chuckles. "What about you? Where are your parents?"

"My mum lives in Australia. She's remarried and has a child with my stepfather, she doesn't bother much with me anymore. I live here with my father but he travels with his job so I'm on my own a lot. I think that may be why Drew and I get on so well. We understand each other. I get made fun of for my weight and he gets teased because he's short so we've got that in common too."

"It's nice to have a friend that really gets you, isn't it?" Marley smiles.

"That's why I stay in LA." Ruby watches Drew surf. "I could never go back to Oz and leave Drew but...-"

"But what?"

"But I know there will come a day that he finds a skinny girl."

"That's not true."

Ruby looks down the beach. "That looks like Drew's oldies coming, doesn't it" She points. "Over there walking with the picnic basket."

Marley looks. "I think you're right." Marley calls out to Noah. "Hey Noah! Your oldies are here!"

Noah looks at Marley, trying to figure out what she's saying. He's not paying attention and gets swallowed up by a wave.

"Pay attention, dude." Drew surfs by his brother.

"Was that Noah who was just wiped out by a wave?" Charlotte asks Cooper.

"Yeah!' Cooper laughs and yells out. "Learn how to surf!"

Noah tumbles to the shore.

Cooper puts the picnic basket down on Ruby and Marley's beach towel while laughing at Noah.

Noah stands up. "I'd like to see _you_ try it, dad."

Charlotte raises her eyebrows. "Go ahead, Coop."

"Only if you come with me." Cooper insists.

"Go ahead, Dr. King. I can give you some tips." Ruby encourages.

"It's okay." Charlotte takes off her beach cover-up. "I took surfing classes when I first moved to LA. It's been years since I've been on a surfboard but if it's anything like horseback riding I should be okay."

"Go for it, Dr. King!" Marley calls out.

Ruby calls out to Drew. "Give your mum your board! She's going to give it a go!"

Drew walks out of the water with his board. "Here you go, momma."

Cooper and Charlotte carry the boards into the water to catch the waves. They start out lying down on the boards to get a feel for the waves since neither one of them had surfed in years.

Noah and Drew sit with Marley and Ruby on the oversized beach towel. Drew opens up the picnic basket. They each grab a piece of chicken and a biscuit while they watch Charlotte and Cooper in the surf.

"This is a good show." Ruby bites into her chicken watching Charlotte and Cooper attempt to stand up on their surf boards now. "It's much better than staying home to watch the idiot box."

"That's for sure." Noah laughs.

"I'm glad we have you two here." Drew tells Noah and Marley. "In case they drown you can do CPR."

They all laugh.

Charlotte and Cooper splash around in the water trying to surf. "You know the kids are laughing at us, Coop?"

"Let them laugh. This is the good life." Cooper tells Charlotte as he climbs back on his board.

"It is." Charlotte manages to ride a wave to shore. The kids clap for her.

Cooper attempts to do the same. "Poppa's coming!" Cooper yells before he wipes out. They all laugh.

* * *

_**A/N-** To anonymous, who said Clove is a weird name, it may not be a traditional name but you have to understand Lila. Lila is different. She's artsy. She's not going to give her child a common or a traditional name. Also, keep in mind this story takes place years into the future and names go in trends. There will be names people use twenty years from now that we never heard of yet. And I've heard the name Sage used quite often these days for little girls. I don't think Clove is far off from Sage. Thanks for reading/reviewing =)_


	47. Chapter 47

_**CHAPTER 47**_

* * *

_**One Month Later-**_

Tess walks through the halls of St. Ambrose pushing eleven month old Brayden in his stroller to visit her momma. Charlotte is talking with another doctor in the hall when she spots Tess.

"Tess!" She calls out.

Tess comes to a halt at the sound of Charlotte's voice. Charlotte walks up to her. "C'mere, kid." She gives her a tight bear hug.

"My momma's dying of cancer." Tess tells Charlotte.

"I know. I'm acting as Chief of Staff again temporarily. " Charlotte tells her. "I'll walk you to your momma's room."

"Thank you." Tess pushes the stroller.

"I see you're a momma now." Charlotte walks behind the stroller so she doesn't get a look at Brayden yet.

"Uh...Yeah." Tess swallows. "I took Brayden here so my momma could see him again before she…-." Tess can't say the word. "Before she...-"

"I understand." Charlotte says. They approach Tess's mother's room. "If you need anything, just ask."

"Okay." Tess gulps before walking in the room.

"Your brother was here with his family this morning and your father just left." Charlotte tells her. "So, you'll be the only one in the room."

"I know." Tess nods. "My father has a doctor's appointment this afternoon. He'll be back up later." Tess pushes the stroller into the room. Charlotte waits outside the door. Tess is surprised at how weak her mother looks. She hasn't seen her in a few months. Her mother's wearing an oxygen mask and her breathing is labored. "Momma, it's me Tess. I brought Brayden to see you."

Cyndi Powers opens her eyes. "He looks like Chase."

"I know, momma." Tess sits Brayden on the bed . "Say hi to grandma, Brayden."

"Ga, ga, ga, ga," Brayden babbles and tries to grab Cyndie's oxygen mask.

"No, no," Tess picks Brayden back up.

"Has he met his father yet?" Cyndi asks. Tess can tell her mother is very short of breath and having difficulty breathing.

"No, momma."

"He should know his father." Cyndi breaths out with great effort.

"Okay, momma." Tess pacifies her momma.

"Tell Brayden his grandma loves him." Cyndi starts coughing uncontrollably and the monitors start ringing.

"Momma?" Tess worries. "What's wrong?"

Cyndi starts gagging and turning blue. Tess runs to the door and calls out, "I need help!"

Charlotte and another doctor run in the room with a few nurse. 'It's okay, Cyndi, try to relax" Charlotte tells her as Cyndi gags and coughs. "Hold her hand and talk to her." Charlotte tells Tess.

Tess grabs her momma's hand. "Momma, it's Tess I love you. I'm going to raise Brayden the same way you raised me. He's going to grow up to be a good respectable man."

Cyndi continues to gag and starts to make gasping noises.

Charlotte fixes her oxygen mask and tells the nurse. "Give her 5mg pf Morphine for pain. We don't want her to suffer."

"What's going on?" Tess asks.

"Just keep talking to her. Happy thoughts." Charlotte orders.

"Remember when I was in fifth grade and I won the spelling bee, momma? You screamed so loud in the audience for me. I was a little embarrassed but I was really happy to know you were so proud of me. You were happier than me. But now I understand because I have Brayden."

Cyndi lets out a long raspy gasp before going limp.

"What's happening?" Tess asks Charlotte.

"She's dying." Charlotte says quietly to Tess. "Keep talking nice thoughts to her."

"Aren't you going to do something? Aren't you going to use the paddles?" Tess asks

"She signed a do not resuscitate order. She's been suffering for months." Charlotte tells Tess.

"You have to do something for her!" Tess demands.

"We're giving her morphine to make it easier. Now talk to her." Charlotte instructs.

"Momma. I love you. It's okay. I'll look out for daddy so you don't have to worry about him. He'll be okay. You know how Brayden can make daddy laugh." Tess holds her mothers hand. "Her hand just went limp." Tess tells Charlotte.

The monitor rings and show a flat line. Charlotte listens to Cyndi's chest with her stethoscope. "Time of death 10:13 am" Charlotte tells the nurse.

"No!" Tess cries. "No! Please No!"

Charlotte ushers Tess into the corner of the room. "Your died peacefully with you holding her hand. We gave her morphine to make her more comfortable."

Tess sobs while Charlotte holds her.

Brayden watches from his stroller. He stretches his arms out to Tess. "Mom-mom-mom-mom" He babbles.

"Your son is scared to see you this way." Charlotte tells her.

"I know but I can't help it, my momma just died."

"You sit here with your momma as long as you like. I'll take your son to my office. Is there anyone you want me to call?"

Tess pulls out Damiens business card. "Call my boyfriend and tell him I need him to come up here to drive me and Brayden home. I'm in no shape to drive home."

"Of course." Charlotte takes the card and looks at it.

Tess adds. "And call my brother. He should be the one to tell my dad."

"We have your brother's number in the chart. Your baby will be in my office with me."

"His name is Brayden" Tess tells Charlotte. "His diaper bag is on the bottom of the stroller. There's bottles, toys and snacks in there for him. Thank you, I'm in no shape to take care of him right now."

"I got it under control." Charlotte pushes Brayden out of his grandmother's hospital room and down the hall to her office.

* * *

Chase sits with Michelle, Lucas, Danielle, Amelia and Jolie in the conference room at SurfSide wellness. Damien provided them with a breakfast consisting of fruit, yogurt and bagels.

"I need each of you to fill out one of our customer survey forms relating to all our products." Damien walks around the room telling them.

His phone rings. He reads the caller's name out loud. "Dr. King?" Who is that? " He looks at the group of doctors "Excuse me."

Damien answers the phone. The group of doctors listen because they all know a Dr. King and wonder if it's the same Dr. King they know. "I'll be right there." He hangs up the phone. "Sorry," he tells the doctors. "I have to go. My girlfriend's mother just passed away at St. Ambrose Hospital."

"Sorry to hear that." Amelia and Danielle both say at the same time.

"How sad." Jolie tells him. "Be careful driving. Do you need a ride?"

"I'll be okay." Damien rushes out of the office.

Chase stares into space and thinks about Tess's momma, Cyndi Powers. She always loved Chase. She told him he was her second son, she was so happy when he proposed to Tess. She must have been so disappointed in him these last two years if Tess told her that he cheated on her. He was the reason Tess left town and wasn't around to be with her momma while she relapsed from her cancer. Tears come to Chase's eyes and he rises to his feet.

"Where are you going?" Michelle asks.

"To the hospital."

"But I have my ultrasound appointment in two hours to find out if we're having a girl or boy."

"I'll be back before then, I promise." He kisses Michelle goodbye and hurries off.

* * *

Cooper walks into Charlotte's office. Brayden's standing up holding onto his stroller cruising around it. "Who's the little guy?" Cooper asks.

"This is Tess's son, Brayden."

"Is it me or does that kid kind of look like Chase?"

"I know." Charlotte raises up her eyebrows at Cooper.

"Is he..-"

"I don't know." Charlotte sits behind her desk holding a container of goldfish crackers she found in the diaper bag for Brayden. "Tess's mother just passed away. Tess is a mess so I wasn't about to ask."

Cooper bends down to greet Brayden. "Hi little guy. I'm Dr. Cooper or maybe Grandpa to you." He smirks.

"Coop." Charlotte warns. "We don't know that."

"How old is he?" Cooper asks.

"Well he's cruising around holding on, not quite walking on his own yet. He's able to eat crackers and he can babble up a storm. I'd say he's maybe ten months old, definitely under a year."

Cooper calculates in his head. "So, Tess left just shy of two years ago and he's almost one. It's possible he could be Chase's son."

"I can't believe Tess would keep Chase's son away from him. She knows how much he wants to be a father." Charlotte taps her pen on her desk. Cooper scoops Brayden up in his arms. Brayden feeds him a cracker. "I'm telling you, Char, it's like a flashback of holding Chase again."

Chase walks in Charlotte's office. He looks at Cooper holding Brayden. "Who's the cute kid?"

"It's Tess's son. His name is Brayden." Charlotte explains. "Tess's momma just passed away. She's very upset so I offered to watch him until her boyfriend gets here."

Chase screws up his face. "When Nicky said Tess had a baby I assumed he was much younger. How old is he?"

"Tess didn't say." Charlotte tells Chase "But we estimate he's close to a year."

Chase calculates in his head. "Either Tess got pregnant as soon as she moved to Georgia or that baby is mine."

"He does look like you." Cooper says.

"How could Tess do something like that to me? She knows how much I wanted a baby."

"She caught you screwing Michelle." Cooper reminds him. "A woman scorned can be pretty hateful."

"We don't know that he's Chase's son." Charlotte warns Cooper. "Let's not count our chicken's before they hatch."

"Can I hold him?" Chase takes Brayden from Cooper. "How are you little guy? Who's your daddy?" Chase looks into Brayden's eyes.

"Ga-ba-ga-ba" Brayden sticks a goldfish cracker in Chase's mouth.

"Yum. Thank you." Chase smiles at Brayden. "You are adorable, little man."

"What's his name again?" Chase asks Charlotte.

"Brayden."

"Hello, Brayden." Chase puts him down on the floor. Brayden picks up a board book and hands it to Chase. "You want me to read this book to you?" Chase sits down with Brayden to read to him. He opens the book and starts to read while Brayden tries to turn the pages.

There's a knock on Charlotte's office door. "Come in."

Tess walks in with Damien. Tess's eyes are red and swollen.

Chase looks up. "I'm so sorry about your momma, Tess. She was an amazing woman."

Tess stares at Chase holding Brayden. She goes pale and her legs feel weak. "I think I'm going to pass out." She grabs onto Damien's shirt.

Charlotte and Cooper rush to her side. Chase gets up out of the chair, still holding Brayden. "Sit her down here."

Damien lifts Tess up cradle style. "You're okay, babe." He carries her to the chair and places her down in it.

"Someone get her some water." Charlotte orders.

Cooper stalks out into the hallway in search of water.

"Mom-mom-mom-mom." Brayden reaches out for Tess.

"Not now, Bray-Bud." Tess tells him. "Momma's not feeling good."

"I'll take the baby out of here." Chase tells them.

"You're not going anywhere with that baby." Damien tells him.

"His mother is falling apart. I'm taking him out so he doesn't have to see it." Chase tells Damien.

"Give me the baby." Damien tells Chase.

"I'll take him." Charlotte takes Brayden from Chase.

"I need to speak to you in the hall." Chase tells Damien. Damien follows Chase into the hallway.

"What?" Damien asks.

"Is Brayden my son?" Chase asks Damien.

"Why would you ask me a question like that?"

"I'm not going to ask Tess, she's a wreck, her mother just died." Chase responds.

"You stay the hell away from Tess and Brayden. Tess told me how you fucked that whore on your desk and then turned around and married her. You stay the hell away from Tess. Tess is mine now. Enjoy the whore you married."

Chase punches Damien in the eye. Damien throws Chase against the wall.

"You punched the wrong guy, sucker!" Damien tells Chase. He flexes his upper arm muscle to show Chase.

Chase tries to get free from Damien's grip. Damien gets a left hook in, punching Chase in the nose. Cooper runs over with the water. "Get off of him." He attempts to pull Damien away from Chase.

"Your son threw the first punch." Damien tells Cooper.

"Is that true?" Cooper asks Chase. Chase nods.

Cooper tells Chase, "you need to leave. Tess doesn't need this today. Her mother just died."

Chase stares down Damien.

Cooper asks Chase. "Doesn't Michelle have her ultrasound this afternoon?"

"Yes." Chase wipes his bloody nose.

"Get out of here and go be with your wife." Cooper tells Chase.

Chase gives Damien another glare before walking off.

Cooper and Damien walk back in Charlotte's office.

"Where did Chase go?" Tess asks them.

"Chase's wife is having an ultrasound this afternoon. He went to go be with her for it." Cooper hands Tess the bottled water.

"That's right, she's pregnant. Is that why she's having an ultrasound?" Tess asks.

"Yes," Charlotte nods while Brayden tries to chew on her necklace. She gently pulls the necklace out of Brayden's fingers, "She's eighteen weeks. They're going to find out the sex of the baby today."

Tess sips the water. "How nice for him." Tess looks over at Damien. "I'm ready for you to take me home now." Tess rises to her feet.

Charlotte places Brayden in his stroller. "Please call us with the funeral arrangements, we'd like to be there."

Tess nods. She clings onto Damien as he pushes the stroller out of Charlotte's office.

"So," Cooper asks. "When do we ask her if Brayden is Chase's son."

"We don't." Charlotte reminds Cooper. "That's up to Chase. It's his responsibility to discuss it with Tess, not ours."

Cooper nods in agreement. "And he will."

* * *

_**REVIEW =)**_


	48. Chapter 48

_**CHAPTER 48**_

* * *

Chase arrives at Surfside Wellness Center five minutes before Michelle is scheduled for her ultrasound. "Where were you?" Michelle demands, annoyed. "I thought you were going to blow off my ultrasound because of Tess and if you did then you just may never see this baby either."

Chase screws up his face and looks at her." What are you talking about, not see this baby either?"

Michelle shakes her head flustered. "I don't know. I was mad you were going to blow off the ultrasound. I would never not let you see your baby. I'm not that cruel."

"Sorry. I'm late. I got hung up at the hospital." He gives her a little kiss on the head now.

"What happened to you? It looks like someone punched you in the nose?"

"Someone did, that idiot body-builder, Damien, punched me in the nose."

"Why?" Michelle asks, annoyed again. "Were you fighting over Tess? Are you jealous that he's dating her?" Michelle puts her hands on her hips to demand an answer.

"No, it wasn't about Tess."

"What else could it possibly be about?"

"You don't want to know."

"Tell me, Chase." Michelle stands still with her hands on her hips.

"Tess told him the whole story about how she found us on my desk. He called you a whore one to many times so I punched him between the eyes and he did this to me."

Michelle looks at him sympathetically now and hugs him. "Thank you for defending me."

"I hate that everyone thinks of you like that."

"C'mon, let's go see our baby." She pulls Chase into the sonogram room. Addison is already waiting.

"Good afternoon." Addison tells them. "You don't need to change into a gown, Michelle. We can just lift your shirt up."

Michelle climbs up on the table. "You're eighteen weeks now, right?" Addison asks.

"Yep." Chase answers.

"We should be able to distinguish the sex. Do you want to know?"

"That's why we're here." Chase answers while he watches Addison spread the gel on Michelle's belly.

"And to make sure the baby's healthy." Michelle adds.

"Okay, we're ready to begin." Addison turns the machine on and moves the transducer around Michelle's belly. After a minute, Addison turns the monitor screen away from them.

Chase notices Addison has a serious expression on her face as she moves the transducer slowly around. "Is everything okay?" Chase asks. "Why'd you turn the screen away from us? We want to see our baby."

"Hmmm...Give me a few minutes." Addison tells him. The room is completely quiet aside from the humming of the ultrasound machine.

Chase breaks the silence. "Can you turn up the volume so we can at least listen to the heart beat?"

"The volume is up." Addison continues to poke around Michelle's abdomen with the transducer.

"Why can't we hear the heartbeat then?" Michelle asks.

"Give me a minute." Addison repeats. She appears to be studying something intently on the ultrasound monitor.

"Come on, Addison!" Chase exclaims. "You're killing us here."

Addison turns the ultrasound machine off now. She takes a deep breath before telling them. "I'm sorry the baby is gone."

"What are you talking about?" Chase protests. "I saw it on the monitor. It's not gone!"

Michelle's eyes dart open in horror at the words Addison just told them.

"The baby no longer has a heartbeat. Michelle should miscarry sometime within the next few days." Addison tells them, somberly. "I'm sorry."

"But I'm eighteen weeks pregnant today." Michelle pleads. " I'm long past the twelve week mark when people have miscarriages. My pregnancy is considered safe now."

Addison explains."Miscarriages can still happen. They're just not as common after the twelfth week. We say most women are safe after the twelfth week because that's when the placenta and the umbilical cord take over nurturing the baby instead of the uterus, if you make it past that point we consider the pregnancy safe but sometimes there are underlying problems."

"Well, what happened!" Chase demands. He barks at Addison. "What happened to our baby!"

"That's what I was looking at so I could give you an answer. Unfortunately, it looks like there's a tight knot in the cord."

"How could that happen?" Michelle asks.

Addison explains, "some of these little ones can be quite the acrobats. They can get tangled up in their cords. I've seen plenty of babies with the cords wrapped around their necks and extremities. It's really only a problem if the cord is pulled tight enough to cut off the nutrient supply which is what I suspect happened here. If the knot is pulled tight it cuts off the baby's oxygen and nutrients, basically the baby's circulation, and the baby dies in utero."

"This is all because the baby did a somersault?" Chase asks Addison.

"Unfortunately, the baby managed to tangle up the cord somehow, pulling it into a tight knot." Addison nods. "The baby could have knotted up the cord a while ago and by continuing to move around caused it to tighten."

"When?" Michelle asks. "When did the baby die?"

"Typically, a woman's body will expel the fetus anywhere within two days or up to a week after the fetus dies. "Have you experienced any cramping or bleeding yet?"

"No." Michelle shakes her head.

"Then it's fair to say if happened recently, maybe yesterday or the day before."

Chase rubs his head with his hands. "This is unbelievable. What do we do now?"

"That's up to you and Michelle." Addison tells him. "You can wait for Michelle's body to expel the fetus naturally or I can admit her to the hospital and induce her today. It's your choice. I'll tell you that most women choose to be induced rather than walk around carrying the baby, knowing it's not alive."

"That would be horrible" Michelle says. "I don't think I could walk around the next few days knowing my baby is dead inside me."

"There's also the complication that if your body doesn't expel the fetus after a week, you'll be susceptible to a severe uterine infection." Addison explains.

"I want to be induced today." Michelle tells Addison as she holds back the tears.

"I'll call the hospital now and let them know that you're on the way. You'll be admitted to the labor and delivery unit where they'll start an IV of pitocin to induce labor. It won't be as long or painful as a full term labor since you're only eighteen weeks. The baby is only six inches long and weighs seven ounces. Do you have any questions?"

"You measured the baby?" Chase asks.

"Yes, it's part of my assessment."

"And is that normal? Is six inches, seven ounces normal for eighteen weeks?" He asks.

"Yes, the baby was perfectly on target for the gestational age." Addison answers.

"So, the baby perfect?"

"Yes, aside from the knot in the cord everything else was normal." Addison tells him.

"Shit!" Chase hits the wall with the palm of his hand.

"That's not going to help, Chase." Addison looks over at Michelle. "Do you have any questions, Michelle?"

"Yes." Michelle nods.

"Hmm...hmm?" Addison waits for the question.

"Was it a boy or a girl?" Michelle asks.

"It was a girl." Addison tells them.

Chase turns around to look at the wall. Michelle tries hard to keep her composure. "I knew it was a girl. I had a feeling."

"I'm sorry." Addison tells them again before leaving the room.

Chase turns around now to look at Michelle. He has tears streaming down his face.

"I'm sorry, Chase. Please don't cry. I'm sorry."

Chase rushes over to her. "You have nothing to be sorry about. This wasn't your fault." He hugs her tight.

Michelle cries in his arms. "Why? Why did this happen to us? Why did this happen to _our_ baby girl?"

"I don't know." Chase sobs into Michelle's neck. "I don't know."

Chase drives Michelle to the hospital. They walk up to the labor and delivery unit. "This is torture" Michelle says. "Why can't they send me to another floor? Why do I have to be on this floor with all the women having babies?"

"They have the labor meds and equipment they need to induce you here. Plus, the nurses on this floor know what do better in this situation than a med-surg nurse would."

Michelle clings onto Chase as they reach the reception desk. Chase talks to the nurse. "Dr. Addison Montgomery sent us. My wife's name is Michelle Freedman."

"Yes, we're expecting you. I'm very sorry." The nurse leads them into a labor room down the hall. "We're going to put you at the far end of the hall, it's quieter there."

Chase understands why they're putting them all the way down the hall so they don't have to hear the happy people and the cries of newborn babies. They enter the room. The nurse hands Michelle a gown. "You'll need to change into this. I'll start an IV and begin the pitocin drip. Dr. Montgomery said you can have Demerol for pain, just let me know when you need it. After I hook up the pitocin you'll start to feel like you're having severe menstrual cramps."

"How long will it take?" Chase asks the nurse.

"Every woman is different, just like in full term labor. The baby is small so it could be as quick as half an hour or it could be two hours. It all depends on Michelle."

Michelle pads into the bathroom to change into her gown. Chase calls his momma in her office. "I've got bad news, momma." Chase sniffles back his tears.

"What is it?" Charlotte asks.

"We went for the ultrasound, the baby has no heartbeat. She had a knot in the cord. The baby's gone momma."

"Where are you?" Charlotte asks.

"Up in labor and delivery at St. Ambrose. Addison admitted Michelle to induce her into labor so she can deliver a dead fetus, momma. This is horrible. It's like we're being tortured for wanting a baby so bad." Chase wipes another tear. "It was a girl, momma. Our baby girl died before she had a chance to live."

"I'll be right up." Charlotte hangs up the phone and rushes as fast as she can up to the labor and delivery unit. She gets there before Michelle makes it out of the bathroom. Michelle takes extra long to change. She's sitting on the toilet crying instead of changing her clothes.

Charlotte rushes in Michelle's labor room. She hugs Chase tight as he sobs on her shoulder. "It'll be okay, Sweet Fella."

After Chase cries for a good three minutes on her shoulder Charlotte lets go of the grip and asks. "Where's Michelle?"

"She's in the bathroom changing. She's been in there a long time. She should be out by now."

"She's probably pretty upset." Charlotte looks towards the bathroom door.

"Even more than me, if you think I'm in bad shape, she's much worse."

Charlotte nods. "She has to deliver a dead baby, can you blame her?"

"It was a freak thing, momma. The baby knotted up it's cord." Chase tells Charlotte "How do I help Michelle, momma?"

"You hold her hand and you stay strong. Don't let her see you breakdown. You need to be the strong one for Michelle and I'll be here for you."

"You're going to stay?" Chase asks.

"The whole time." Charlotte gives him a sympathetic smile. "And I suggest Michelle take some Demerol. She's going to need it to get through this."

"Okay. I'll make sure she takes it."

Michelle comes out of the bathroom with her gown on. "I'm ready." She tells them. Charlotte gives Michelle a big bear hug. "I'm so sorry, honey."

Chase goes out in the hall to find the nurse to start the drip. Cooper meets him in the hall. I just saw Addison. She told me what was going on. "I'm sorry, son." Cooper hugs Chase.

"Thanks, dad. Momma's in the room."

"I don't want to go in there." Cooper tells Chase. "I'll give Michelle her privacy."

"Thanks, dad." Chase walks back in the room with the nurse. "Dad's out in the hall, momma."

Charlotte tells the nurse. "I'm going to step in the hall for a moment but I want to be with them for this."

"That's fine." The nurse agrees. "I'm just going to start her IV. I'll wait for you before I administer the pitocin."

Michelle gives the nurse her hand and stares at the ceiling waiting for her punishment to begin.

Charlotte walks in the hall and hugs Cooper tight around the neck.

"You alright?" Cooper asks.

"I don't know how to do this, Coop." Charlotte lets go of his neck to talk to him. She wipes a tear leaking from her eye.

"You don't have to do this, Char." Cooper wipes another tear.

"Yes, I do. He's my son, I told him he had to be strong for Michelle." Charlotte wipes another tear. "I promised I would be there for him. How do I do it?"

"You got me, Chief. You go in there and be strong for Chase and Michelle and I'll be right our here waiting for you. You've got me."

Charlotte looks up at Cooper. "I'm trying to be strong, Coop, I'm tryin' but how do I stand there and watch Michelle give birth to my dead grandchild. That's my grandchild."

"_Our _grandchild." Cooper reminds. He clasps both of Charlotte's hands in his now. "I know this is hard but try to think like a doctor, Chief, not like a grandmother."

"I don't think I can do that, Cooper. That's our son in there and our grandchild. Did you know it was a girl?"

"No." Cooper rubs his chin.

Charlotte hugs him again. "It's not fair."

"You're right." Cooper says, softly, while rubbing Charlotte's back. "It's not fair. It isn't right."

"I wish I could take their pain away." Charlotte rubs her nose.

"Me too." Cooper agrees. "I'd go in there with you but I don't think Michelle would be comfortable with me in the room. I'll be right outside in the waiting room."

"Okay." Charlotte swallows and nods.

"You can do this, Chief, do it for Chase. He needs his momma now more than ever."

"I know." Charlotte stiffens her posture, trying to gain her composure before she walks in the room. "Wish me luck."

"You can do this, Char. You're the strongest woman I know."

Charlotte shoots him a little smile. "You're lyin', if being a momma softened me then being a grandma turned me into jelly."

Cooper laughs a few seconds, he loves how becoming a momma has softened her but he also loves when she gives him a glare or a sarcastic quip to let him know that the sassy, strong woman he fell in love with is still in there. He tells her, "Go in there and think like a doctor. Be the almighty Dr. King, not momma, not grandma. Think like a doctor. You can do this. I know you can."

Charlotte sighs, "I'll try but if I break down in there then...-"

"Look at me, woman." Cooper lifts her chin up, cupping it in his hand, so she's looking him in the eye. "You're strong. _You_ can do this. You're doing it for our son."

"Okay." Charlotte swallows hard before nodding in agreement. "I can do this."

Cooper lifts her chin up again with his finger this time. He gives her a soft kiss on the lips for encouragement. After they break the kiss he tells her. "I'll be right outside."

Charlotte sucks in a deep breath. "Got it. I'm strong. I'm not gonna cry. I can do this." She tells herself again. She lifts her chin up before entering the labor room.

Cooper watches her walk in the room. He leans up against the wall and takes a deep breath, he clenches his fists as he tries to fight the tears forming in his eyes.

* * *

_**REVIEWS are AWESOME! =)**_


	49. Chapter 49

**CHAPTER**_** 49**_

* * *

_**Two Weeks Later-**_

Charlotte and Cooper knock on the door of Chase and Michelle's house. "We come with food." Cooper's carrying a large casserole dish while Charlotte holds a basket of biscuits. We made vegetable lasagna since it's one of Michelle's favorite dishes." Cooper hands the casserole dish to Chase.

"How's Michelle doing?" Charlotte asks Chase as she follows him into his house.

Chase shrugs. "The same. She's depressed. She keeps looking at the clothes and toys she bought for the baby. I told her she shouldn't buy anything until she was six months pregnant but once she passed the twelve week mark she went crazy shopping for the baby. I was going to give the baby's stuff to Lila for Clove but Michelle won't let me."

"Keep the stuff." Charlotte tells him.

"You guys are young." Cooper pats Chase's back. "You'll have that big family you want some day. You just need to have patience."

"I don't think Michelle could go through this again." Chase rubs his head. "I mean to carry a baby for eighteen weeks and then have to be put in labor to deliver it dead, that was pure torture."

"I know things seem bad now." Charlotte rubs Chase's arm. "But it'll get better."

"It was a girl." Chase sits down and tells them. "We were going to have a little girl."

Charlotte swallows and nods. "We know."

Chase sighs. "That day is like a fog to me. That had to be the worst day of my life. I just want to forget it."

Cooper nods. "Tess is probably thinking the same thing. That was the day her mother died."

"I know." Chase rubs his hand over his face.

Cooper takes the foil off the casserole dish. "Is Michelle going to come down and eat with us?"

Chase shakes his head. "She was sleeping the last time I checked. I'm going to let her sleep for now. She's so sad when she's awake."

"It'll get better." Charlotte says again. "Give her time to heal."

"Have you heard anything from Tess?" Cooper asks Chase.

"No." Chase nods his head. "Everything got crazy after we lost the baby. I haven't had a chance to call her."

"You should." Cooper sets out the dinner plates.

"Why?" Chase asks. "Tess has a new life with that jerk Damien."

"Her son looks like you." Cooper hints.

"Damien is tall with dark hair and light eyes too, dad."

"I would call her and ask just to be sure. If he was mine I would want to know." Cooper suggests.

"Tess wouldn't do that to me. She knows how much I want a child. Tess isn't capable of keeping my own son away from me."

"A woman scorned will bite back with a vengeance." Cooper warns Chase.

Chase takes a sip of beer. "Even if Tess did hate me enough to do that, she wouldn't do it to her child. She wouldn't keep him from knowing his father. I know Tess. She's not capable of that kind of thing."

"Just call her." Cooper tells Chase. "If for nothing else but to ask her how she's doing after her mother died."

Chase sighs. "Okay." He walks over to the phone in his kitchen. The answering machine is flashing, there are messages that haven't been played yet. Chase pushes the button and plays the messages, He deletes them as he listens.

He pays close attention to the sixth message. "Chase, it's Tess. Your momma asked me to call with the funeral arrangements. My momma is going to be waked Tuesday and Wednesday at the funeral home by the hospital from 2-4 pm and the funeral service will be at St. Joseph's Church immediately followed by the burial at the cemetery on Wednesday morning. My momma really loved you and spoke highly of you during the ten years we were together. I hope to see you and your family at her funeral." Tess hangs up.

"When was that message from?" Charlotte asks with wide eyes.

"It had to be from right after her momma died. They wouldn't wait this long to have the funeral. I was so caught up with Michelle losing the baby, I didn't check the messages on the home phone. I only use my cell phone. Why didn't Tess call my cell number?" Chase rambles.

"She probably doesn't have it. You changed your number when you changed services a few months back." Cooper reminds.

"Damn!" Chase worries. "This looks bad. It looks like I didn't care enough to come to her momma's funeral. It looks like I don't care about Tess or her momma or her father."

"Try calling her father's house." Charlotte urges.

Chase pushes the number for Tess's father's house. After a few rings the older gentleman answers.

"Hello Mr. Powers. This is Chase Freedman, I'm very sorry about the passing of your wife." Chase pauses a moment while Mr. Powers responds. After the older man speaks, Chase asks, "may I please speak to Tess?" He pauses again to let Mr. Powers talk. "Can you give me a number to reach her at in Georgia? Her grandmother's number is out of service." He pauses again to let Mr. Powers talk. 'Well, can you please tell Tess I called and I'm sorry I missed her momma's funeral."

"What happened?" Charlotte asks after Chase hangs up.

"Mr. Powers said Tess and her boyfriend left with their baby on Thursday to go back to Georgia."

"He said _their_ baby?" Cooper asks.

"He specifically said _their_ baby." Chase repeats.

"I could have sworn he looked like you when you were that age." Cooper insists.

"Damien has dark hair and light eyes like Chase." Charlotte tells Cooper.

"It wasn't just the coloring." Cooper says. "It's the whole face. He reminds me of Chase."

"Tess wouldn't do that to me." Chase tells Cooper again. "I will never forgive Tess if she did that to me. Never!"

"Just call and talk to her." Charlotte insists. "We, I mean _you_ need to be sure the boy is Damien's son."

"Mr. Powers said Tess told him not to give me her address or telephone number. Tess was angry I didn't come to her momma's funeral. I told him to tell Tess I'm sorry and to tell her I called the next time he talks to her."

"You can get Damien's number through work easily. He's your medical supplier" Cooper tells Chase. "Call Damien and insist he gives you Tess's number."

"Damien hates me. He's already warned me to stay away from Tess. Do you really think he's going to give me her number?"

"It's at least worth a try." Charlotte responds.

* * *

Tess calls her father on the phone and speaks with him for several minutes. After she hangs up Damien asks. "How's your dad doing?"

"He's so drugged up on sedatives right now he doesn't know what he's saying." Tess sits down on the couch next to Damien. "I'm worried about him. I don't know how he's going to make it. He's been married to my momma for almost forty years."

Damien pats Tess on the knee. "Your dad will be alright. That's why the doctors gave him valium to help him get him through this hump of grief. Once a little time passes he'll be able to deal with his grief without needing to take a pill." Damien rubs Tess's leg.

"I'm going to call my brother to check on him anyway. He sounded out of it."

"What did he say?"

"He kept rambling on about Chase and how he was sorry Chase missed the funeral and that my mother thought Chase was a lovely boy and all that. He even told me Chase said to say 'hi.'"

"He _is_ out of it. Chase didn't even bother to come to the funeral." Damien tells her. "Have your brother go check on him."

Tess picks up her phone to call her brother. Damien's cell phone buzzes at the same time. He looks at the number and is surprised to see the call is from Chase Freedman. "I have a business call." Damien tells Tess. "I'm going to take it outside on the porch."

"Okay. I'm gonna be on the phone with my brother anyway." Tess waves.

Damien answers the phone. "This better be a business call, Freedman."

"It's not. It's about Tess."

"I told you to stay away from Tess. You broke her heart. She's finally over you, now move on." Damien warns him.

"I need Tess's phone number. I want to apologize for missing her momma's funeral."

"Your two weeks too late, Freedman, Tess doesn't want anything to do with you."

"Look...My wife was pregnant and we lost our baby the same day Tess's mother died. We were going through a difficult time and I didn't check the messages. Can you please just tell Tess that?"

"I'll pass it on." Damien answers. "Now leave us alone. You've hurt Tess enough for one lifetime by screwing that whore nurse you married while you engaged to Tess."

Chase hates hearing Damien call Michelle a whore. He takes a deep breath before responding. "I'm aware how much I hurt Tess. I wouldn't do anything else to hurt her."

"Then stay out of her life." Damien advises.

"I can't do that until I talk to her. I need to ask her about something important."

Damien accuses. "You don't have the right to breathe the same air as Tess! She doesn't wanna talk to the likes of you."

Chase sighs. "Then, just please tell her I'm sorry I missed her mother's funeral. Maybe she'll understand we were in grief over losing our baby since she has a baby of her own."

"I'll already told you I would pass it on." Damien's tone is annoyed. "Is there anything else?"

"Yeah..." Chase hesitates. "How's Brayden doing?"

"Brayden is none of _your_ business."

"I'm a pediatrician, babies can sense when something is wrong. Brayden knows his momma is hurting." Chase advises.

"Brayden's got his own pediatrician and _me_ to look out for him when his momma can't." Damien tells Chase. "You don't need to worry. I can take care of my _own_ son."

Chase answers, disappointed. "You and Tess are lucky to have such a cute little guy like Brayden."

"Yes, we are. Now you need to leave us alone." Damien warns.

Chase hangs up, disappointed. "Brayden _is_ Damien's son." Chase tells Charlotte and Cooper. Cooper shakes his head.

Chase looks at him. "Tess would never lie about something like that dad." Chase's voice is firm as he glares at Cooper.

Cooper holds his hands up in surrender. "Okay, at least you asked. Now we know."

"Okay." Charlotte nods. "Let's try and eat dinner in peace."

Chase stands up. "I'm going to take some lasagna up to Michelle in bed." Chase prepares a plate for Michelle before leaving the kitchen."

After Chase leaves Cooper asks Charlotte. "What do you think?"

"What do I think about what?"

"Do you think Tess is lying about who Brayden's father is?" Cooper asks.

Charlotte answers. "I have to agree with Chase on this one. Tess doesn't have a mean bone in her body. She could never keep Chase's son from him, no matter how badly Chase hurt her."

Cooper swallows. "Okay, then." He cuts up his lasgana.

* * *

Damien comes back in the house. "What did your brother say?"

"He's going over to check on my dad now. I told him my dad was saying whacky things. How was your business call?"

"Boring." Damien sits on the couch and puts his feet up on the coffee table.

Tess continues. "BJ volunteered to watch Brayden for me again tomorrow so if you want to take a paddle boat ride on the river I'd like that." Tess leans her head on Damien's chest. "I need to get away."

"That's mighty nice of BJ to offer to watch the baby so much."

"BJ knows I'm grieving, he thinks Brayden can pick up that I'm not myself. He actually suggested the paddleboat ride on the river so I could have a relaxing day to just get away from life for a little while."

"BJ doesn't know you're going with me or then he might not be so quick to suggest it." Damien raises his eyebrows.

"I've emphasized over and over again to BJ that me and him are just friends and that's all we'll ever be, so he knows." Tess explains.

"Then why don't you tell him you're dating me? Be honest with me, Tess. Why are you keeping our relationship a secret from BJ?"

"I don't want to hurt him." Tess explains. "He's a good friend and a really nice guy. He's great with Brayden but I'm not attracted to him the way I'm attracted to you. He' not my type."

"And he'll be hurt if he knows you're dating me?"

"Yes, BJ thinks I'm still hung up on Chase and that's why I'm not ready to date again. If he knows I'm dating you, he'll be hurt. I don't want to do that to him. I know what it's like to have your heart stomped all over and I don't wish it on anyone."

"Do you still love Chase?" Damien pushes a strand of hair behind Tess's ear and looks her in the eye.

"I'll always care about Chase because he's Bray-Bud's father but I don't think I could forgive him for marrying that whore _and_ for not coming to my momma's funeral. He was real nice to me the day my momma died when we were talking in his momma's office. I couldn't believe he was holding Brayden and being nice to me like old times but then he took off to go to his whore of a wife's ultrasound and I never heard from him again. The bitch probably told him to stay away from me and since she's having his baby he listens to her. He could care less about Brayden even after he got to meet him and hold him. He knows Brayden is his son. I even left him the ultrasound photos, two years ago."

"So, Chase _knows_ that Brayden is his son?" Damien asks, confused.

"Yes, I left him a letter and the ultrsound pictures along with my engagement ring after I caught him cheating with that whore. I told him if he wanted to work things out to meet me at this restaurant, Giorgio's, if not I was going to leave town. He never showed up.

"And you _know_ for a fact that he got the pictures and the ring and all?"

"Yes. I left them on his desk. He called and left me a message about finding the ring on his desk and said how could I do that to him? He said it was rude to just leave it on his desk so I know he got it. He prefers his new life with his whore because of her hot supermodel body and looks and all. He's changed and now that he's having a baby with his whore he has no need for Brayden. Brayden doesn't need him either."

"And neither do you. You've got me now." Damien leans in to kiss Tess.

* * *

_**I'm loving all the reviews and feedback. Keep 'em coming and I'll keep the chapters coming too! =) **_


	50. Chapter 50

_**CHAPTER 50**_

* * *

_**A/N-** This chapter takes place three months after the last because we need to move the story along to get back to the prologue which takes place five years after chapter one._

* * *

Andie throws a surprise party for Nicky since his band is done with their tour of the USA. She invited everyone to Giorgio's on the water to celebrate. The band members are surprised after they run onto stage and it suddenly goes dark. The lights turn on ten seconds later with shouts of *SURPRISE*. The sounds of cheering and party horns fill the room! The restaurant is decorated with bright balloons and a big banner that says *YOU ROCK BROKEN SPELL!*

"Whoa!" Thank you. "Nicky grabs the microphone and asks every one. "Should we play a song?"

"YEAH!" The crowd shouts!

"Don't forget where you came from!" Cooper yells out to them.

Nicky's band starts playing while the guests dance, other's chat at the bar.

Andie hugs Noah and Marley. "I'm so happy you could make it home for this."

"What?" Noah teases. "We could never pass up on a free Broken Spell concert!"

"So, are you and Nicky still going to talk to us when he's rich and famous?" Marley teases.

"Where are all the kids?" Noah asks.

"Harper and Charley are running around, dancing, and I hired a nanny to look after Michael Nikolas and Hope Charlotte tonight." Andie teels him.

"Look at you, a rich momma with a nanny." Marley smirks.

"Just for tonight. My momma's kinda mad at me for hiring a nanny. She was raised by them but it's just for tonight. I want to be able to have some fun too."

"I don't blame you." Marley pulls Andie to the bar. "What do you want to drink?"

Noah finds Dylan. "How's fatherhood going?"

"Great. I can't believe that Clove's five months old already. You and Marley gotta do it, dude." Dylan pats Noah on the back. "It's a whole new thing."

Noah pulls Dylan to the side and tells him in a hushed voice."I bought Marley a ring. I have it on my pocket." Noah pulls out a little box to show Dylan. "I was going to do it tonight but I don't know, is it appropriate to do it at Broken Spell's party. Is that stealing their thunder?"

"Wait til the end of the night." Dylan suggests. "Nice ring by the way. Congrats!" Dylan pats Noah on the back.

"How are you and Lila doing?"

"We're doing the friends with benefits thing, nothing too serious." Dylan shrugs. "Neither one of us is looking for a commitment just yet so we're good."

"Oh."

Marley, Andie and Lila are at the bar. Andie sips a beer."When are you and my brother ever going to get hitched?" She asks Marley.

"Whenever he pops the question." Marley shrugs.

"And how's that baby girl of yours doing?" Andie asks Lila.

"She's great. My mom's holding her. She loves being a grandma to a baby again." Lila points out Violet sitting across the room showing off her granddaughter.

"What's up with you and Dylan?" Marley asks.

"I don't know, we're friends" Lila shrugs while and raising her eyebrows. "With benefits."

"And you're okay with that?" Andie asks.

"I was okay with it up until Friday."

"What happened Friday?" Marley asks.

"I met this hot looking dude in my photography class. He asked me out to dinner and a movie. I told him yes. Dylan doesn't know."

"Well, if your only friends it shouldn't matter?" Marley asks.

"Do you think I should tell Dylan?" Lila scrunches up her nose.

"If your just friends, why wouldn't you tell him?" Marley asks.

"Because of the benefits part. I don't know what to do. I'm so confused."

"Sounds like you and Dylan are more than just friends with benefits." Andie sips her drink. "Tell Dylan you're interested in dating this other guy and see how he reacts."

"Maybe that's why you want to see this other guy." Marley suggests. "You want to see how Dylan would react, if he would care that means you're more that friends."

Lila sighs. "I'm kinda nervous for his reaction."

"Do you want him to react?" Andie asks. "Or would you be happy if he was indifferent?"

"I think I want him to react." Lila answers. "But I don't want to ruin our friendship because of Clove. No matter what happens, Dylan and I need to be friends of some sort because of Clove."

Pete and Violet pose for a picture with their two granddaughters, Rosie and Clove.

"Hand over my granddaughter." Amelia teases, taking five month old Clove from Violet. Rosie runs off with Harper to dance.

Cooper shakes his head. "I can't believe we're all grandparents."

"That's what happens when you grow older, Coop." Charlotte sips her drink.

"It beats being an old maid." Violet adds.

Addison joins them. "I want Danielle and Lucas to have another child. Rosie needs a little brother or sister."

Sam adds. "No, Rosie doesn't _need_ a sibling. Grandma Addie, wants a new baby around the house."

Addison asks Cooper and Charlotte. "How are Chase and Michelle doing?"

Charlotte shakes her head. "Michelle didn't want to come out tonight. They're at home."

Violet's therapist ear perks up. "How long has it been since Michelle lost the baby?"

"Three and a half months." Charlotte answers.

"She should be working through her grief by now." Violet offers her advice.

"She is." Cooper nods. "She went back to work last month, she's functioning normally. She's just not ready to come to social events like this where people might ask her how she's doing and there are other babies around."

"Like Clove." Violet nods.

"Yeah, give her time. she'll be alright." Cooper sips his beer.

"They can start trying again. I told them to wait three months." Addison tells them.

"Hopefully those two kids can catch a break and have a baby soon." Charlotte places her empty glass on the bar.

Broken Spell takes a break. Nicky finds Andie at the bar. He grabs her off her bar stool and picks her up, cradling her in his arms.

"Are you crazy?" She laughs. "Put me down."

"I'm sweeping my princess, Belle, off her feet."

"Everyone's looking at us." Andie smiles. "Put me down."

"No way, you're mine tonight." Nicky carries Andie off.

"Where are we going?" She asks. "We can't just leave your party and our kids."

"We'll be back." He laughs. "It won't take us long."

"Where are they going?" Marley watches Nicky carry Andie off.

"And what are they doing?" Lila watches too.

"If you don't know by now I'm not saying." Marley rolls her eyes.

Noah walks over. "My sister and Nicky are so weird. Did you just see them?"

Marley and Lila giggle.

Noah groans. "They have four kids and they still act like they're a couple of kids."

Marley snickers. "I'm surprised they don't have a dozen babies by now if they're that horny."

"Aww, stop." Lila scolds Marley and Noah. "They weren't doing anything horny. Nicky just whisked her off her feet. I think it's kind of romantic."

"Oh?" Marley teases. "So, you want Dylan to come over here and do that to you?" Marley laughs. "He's my brother so I can arrange it."

"You better not." Lila chuckles.

"Did I just see Nicky carrying your daughter out the door?" Violet asks Charlotte and Cooper.

Charlotte shakes her head and sighs. "Nothing those two do surprises me anymore."

Dylan walks over to Lila, Marley and Noah. "Looks like the party is starting to disperse." He says quietly to Noah. "It might be a good time to make your move on Marley now." Dylan pats Noah's back. "Are you going to get down on one knee?" Dylan laughs.

"I planned to."

"Oh, dude. I gotta see this." Dylan grins at Marley who has no idea what's going on. He looks over at Lila whose watching him wondering what he and Noah are up to. "Hey, Babe." Dylan grins at Lila.

"Hey babe, yourself." Lila smacks Dylan's butt. Lila sips down another drink for liquid courage. "I have a question for you."

"What is it , babe?" Dylans plops down on the stool next to her.

"Would you be alright with if it if I went out with this guy from my photography class? This dude asked me out the other day and I said yes but I feel funny cuz of us."

Dylan is taken by surprise. It takes him a minute to answers. "So, are you saying you want to stop the benefits and just be friends?"

"I don't know." Lila shrugs. "If it doesn't work out with this guy then we can go back to our benefits deal."

Dylan looks away, he doesn't answer. Lila looks at Marley. They both pick up on his disappointment.

Noah takes his turn now. "Hey, Marz Barz?"

"What?" Marley turns to look at Noah.

"I have a question for _you_ now."

"Shoot."

Noah gets down on one knee. He pulls a little gold box out of his pocket, Marley's eyes open wide, her mouth drops open. "Marley Elizabeth, I love you. Will you marry me and be my wife?"

Marley cries "Yes! Yes! YES!" attracting the attention of the rest of the guests.

Noah smiles and slips the diamond ring on her finger. Everyone claps for them.

Cooper and Charlotte shoot each other a look and a smile before walking over to congratulate them. "It's about time." Cooper hugs his son first and then Marley.

Charlotte hugs Marley. "Welcome to the family, Marz Barz."

* * *

_**I love reviews! =)**_


	51. Chapter 51

_**CHAPTER 51**_

* * *

_**Three months later -**_

Charlotte and Cooper are babysitting for Charley, Michael Nikolas and Hope. Harper's having a sleepover at Addison's house with Addison's granddaughter Rosie.

Cooper lies on the floor and stacks blocks with thirteen month old Hope Charlotte. Two year old Michael Nikolas runs and slams into Cooper. "Oh!" Cooper yells out. "Careful Michael."

Charlotte teases "Be easy Michael, grandpa's old."

"I wanna see you get down on the floor and play, granny." Cooper gives it back to Charlotte who's reading a book with five year old Charley. Charley is the spittin' image of Andie with his red hair and blue eyes. He even has epilepsy just like his momma.

"Charley and I are just fine on the couch reading." Charlotte tousles his red hair." Aren't we, buddy?"

"Yeah." Charley turns the page. "You read this page Nana."

"Okay," Charlotte looks at the book.

"Me want it." Two year old Michael Nikolas tries to grab the book out of Charlotte's hand. "No, Michael, Nana is reading with Charley."

"Me want it!" Michael tries to pull the book again.

"No!" Charlotte firmly tells the tot. Michael turns red in the face, he walks over to Cooper and Hope, kicking down the blocks they just stacked into a tall tower. Hope cries, Cooper picks her up. "It's okay Hopie, Michael is sorry."

"No sorry!' Michael picks up a cardboard block and throws it at Hope.

Cooper looks at Charlotte. "This kid reminds me of Nicky, sweet one minute and throwing a temper tantrum the next."

"Put him on a time out, Cooper."

"Why can't you?" Why do I have to be the bad guy?"

"Because I'm reading to Charley."

"I'm his grandpa. I'm not going to be the bad cop."

"He's never going to respect you Cooper. You need to teach him right and wrong."

Cooper thinks a minute before picking two year old Michael up. "You have to sit in the time out chair for two minutes."

"Noooo!" Michael kicks and screams. "Nooo!"

"Remind me why people have kids again." Cooper says to Charlotte as he carries Michael Nikolas to the time out chair.

* * *

Chase walks in the bedroom to find Michelle watching tv. He drops an envelope down on the bed. "What's that?" She asks.

"It's an invitation to Noah and Marley's engagement party."

"When is it?" Michelle asks.

"In three months, So we don't really have an excuse not to go. They're giving everyone plenty of notice. Plus he's my brother, I have to go. I want to go."

Michelle takes a deep breath and sighs. "I'll go with you."

"There are going to be babies there including Lila's daughter, Clove, who's the same age our first baby would be if you didn't miscarry. Are you going to be able to handle it?"

"Do I have a choice?" Michelle puts the remote down.

"It's been seven months since we lost the second baby. Addison said we could start trying again four months ago."

Michelle sighs.

"What's wrong?" Chase asks her.

Michelle looks down at the blanket as she talks. "I know we got married because we both wanted to start a family right away and I know you want to start trying again but I can't, Chase. I can't go through that again. Losing the first baby at six weeks was bad enough but losing the second baby at eighteen weeks and delivering the baby dead was sheer torture. I can't do it again, Chase, I don't have it in me. I won't survive losing another pregnancy."

"What do you want to do, Michelle?"

"What about adoption?" Are you into that?"

Chase sits on the bed next to Michelle. "I could get into adoption but I would want to adopt an older child from foster care."

"But I want a baby." Michelle looks at him with teary eyes.

"We can still have a baby. You _can_ get pregnant. You're not infertile. We just had bad luck with the last two. The next time it'll work out for us. I know it will. The third time's a charm." He rubs her knee.

Michelle runs her palm down his cheek. "I know you want a baby so bad and I want to give you one but I'm terrified Chase. The day Addison said that the baby was gone was the worst day of my life. I can't do it again."

"It's not going to happen again." Chase squeezes Michelle's knee. The next time it'll work out you'll see. I have a plan."

"What's your plan?" Michelle furrows her brow, interested.

"We're not going to try to get pregnant."

"Huh?"

"I mean no more looking at the calendar to make sure we're together on your fertile days, no more ovulation predictor kits, no more Viagra for me. We're just going to do it whenever the moods strikes us without birth control and when it happens, it happens, no pressure. It could take a month or a year, no pressure and in the mean time we can look into adopting an older child."

"Can we hold off on the adoption for a little while?" Michelle asks.

"Why? I thought you wanted to start a family right away?"

"If we adopt a child out of foster care that child is going to come into our home with its own issues which is fine but I'm not at the point that I can be a full time mother to a child with issues. I need to get my own issues under control first. So you understand?"

"I understand." Chase kisses her on the head.

"Can you just hold me tonight?" Michelle asks.

"Sure." Chase wraps his arms around her while they lie in bed and watch tv.

* * *

Andie and Nicky lie in bed together in the afterglow. "Ahh!" Andie lies her head on Nicky's chest. "It's so nice to have you home permanently, to know that you don't have to leave and go on the road again in a few days."

"Mmm..." Nicky puffs on his cigarette.

"It feels like it did when we were first dating. The kids are all out of the house. We can be as loud as we want."

Nicky exhales his smoke before telling her, "we better be careful, we don't want to end up with baby number five."

"Hey, that reminds me." Andie lifts her head up. "When are you getting that vasectomy you promised me you would get after baby number four?"

Nicky screws up his face. "Do I have to, Belle?"

Andie screws up her face now. "Don't tell me you want another baby?"

"No, no, no." Nicky puffs on his cigarette. "Not after all we went through with Hope but I don't want to snip my guys."

"You promised."

"Come on, Belle, you're asking me to cut off what makes me a man."

"They don't castrate you." Andie laughs. "They just snip off some little tubes in there so you can't make sperm."

"But that's what makes me a man. I don't want to fire empty bullets. And what about my singing voice? I might start singing like a woman if I let them chop off my manhood. This could ruin my career." He jokes.

Andie back slaps his arm. playfully. "I should send you to talk to my momma, the sexologist. She can explain all about vasectomies to you and how they don't make you less of a man."

"Did your dad ever have one?"

"I don't know." Andie furrows her brow. "It's not something we talk about over lunch.

"It's kind of sad when you think about it."

"What?"

"Your brother Chase and Michelle are having so much trouble trying to produce one healthy baby and we have four. Maybe we should have a kid for them."

"I hope you're not serious." Andie looks at Nicky.

"We're both very fertile. Don't you wanna help someone less fortunate out like your brother." Nicky puffs on his cigarette.

Andie responds "We had a lot of issues when Hope Charlotte was born and I was pregnant with her. She was far from healthy."

"But she's doing okay now. Chase and Tess could be thrilled to have a baby like Hope."

"I wonder how Tess and her baby are doing?"

"That came from out of the blue." Nicky leans over to put out his cigarette in the ash tray on the bedside table

"My parents said that Tess's baby looks a lot like my brother when he was small. It's possible he could be Chase's."

"Why didn't Chase do a paternity test?"

"Tess's boyfriend told Chase that the baby was his son. He has dark hair and blue eyes like Chase."

"I wonder if that's why Tess is dating Damien? Since he looks like your brother she's using him as Chase's surrogate?"

"Maybe?" Andie shrugs. "Damien could be lying to Chase because he doesn't want him back in Tess's life."

"Your brother should do a paternity test."

"My brother doesn't believe Tess would ever keep his child away from him. Tess knows how bad Chase wants to be a dad. It wouldn't be like Tess to be that vindictive to keep Chase and his son apart."

"Yeah," Nicky nods. "That doesn't seem like Tess. She wouldn't do that."

"I guess it's not Chase's son."

"Why do you sound so sad?" Nicky asks.

"I kinda hoped it was." Andie sighs.

* * *

_**Next Chapter-**_ Three months later Noah and Marley's engagement party.


	52. Chapter 52

_**CHAPTER 52**_

* * *

Marley and Noah wait in the lobby of Giorgio's to greet their guests. Marley's wearing a strapless ivory chiffon party dress with a bubble hem. The dress is ordorned with a flowery pattern on the skirt. Her long dark curly hair down flows along with her as she walks. She's wearing low sandals so not to appear taller than her fiancée, Noah Freedman. Noah's blonde and bares a strong resemblance to his momma,Charlotte King-Freedman. He's sporting a grey jacket and light green tie for his engagement party.

Broken Spell starts playing up on stage. Marley and Noah walk over to Andie whose sitting at the bar.

Marley starts talking. "These parties can't be much fun for you. Nicky's always up on stage."

Andie shrugs. "I'm used to it."

"Where are the kids?" Noah asks.

"Nicky hired a nanny to keep an eye on them at the party so I could mingle."

"How nice." Marley smiles.

Andie takes a sip of her drink. "Just cuz I don't have a dance partner doesn't mean you two shouldn't dance. Get out there it's your engagement party."

"We thought we would mingle with the guests first." Noah tells her as he watches Dylan walk in with Lila, holding Clove.

"So, are they a couple now?" Andie asks.

"I hope so. They make an adorable little family." Marley watches them.

Lila hands Clove to her mother then walks over to greet Marley and Noah. "Congratulations." She gives them both a big hug.

"You're next." Noah teases.

"Hey! Don't put ideas in Lila's head." Dylan protests.

"Nah." Lila laughs. "I'm good with things the way they are." She looks at Dylan. "C'mon, let's dance." Lila drags Dylan onto the dance floor.

Andie watches. "Well, they certainly seem happy."

"Those two were meant to be together." Marley watches them dance.

"Why do you say that?" Andie asks.

"Just the way they are, the way they've always been. They're both sort of free spirits that don't play by the rules."

"You can say that again. They got us into a lot of trouble as kids." Noah agrees.

"How so?" Andie asks.

"Well, it was them always talking us into smoking weed." Marley tells.

Andie shakes her head. "You could have said no."

Noah adds. "And it was Dylan's idea to drive momma's car to Marley's house when we forgot the weed there. We took down Jolie's mailbox."

Marley rolls her eyes. "My mom still talks about that designer mailbox. I'll never hear the end of that one."

"But." Noah smiles. "I wouldn't trade those times for anything. Those were good times."

Andie raises her glass. "Well, here's to more good times as a married couple and lots of babies."

Marley shakes her head. "I don't know about lots, two is enough for me."

"What about you, Noah?" Andie asks. "Do you want lots of babies or just two?"

"Two is fine." Noah takes his drink from the bartender.

Andie tells them. "I like having four kids like momma and daddy had. We had a good time growing up together. I want that for my kids too."

Noah sips his drink. "Yeah, it was great for you. You got all the attention. You're the oldest and the only girl."

Marley smirks. "Princess Alexandria Freedman."

Andie chuckles because she knows it's true. "Don't act like a baby, Noah. You got plenty of attention too."

Noah responds. "Yeah... when I got caught smoking weed and taking momma's car out. I got attention then. And when you stole money from momma's dresser. I got plenty of attention for that too."

Andie sighs. "I guess I need to give Charley and Michael Nikolas extra lovin' so they don't feel like the neglected middle children."

Noah nods. "Michael's gonna need it the most. Charley's the oldest boy. He gets plenty of attention but I can already see Michael acting out."

Andie rolls her eyes. "And he's only three. I'm in trouble when he's a teenager, aren't I?"

Noah and Marley chuckle before leaving Andie to mingle with their guests.

Cooper and Charlotte are talking with Violet and Pete. "Congratulations." Pete shakes Cooper's hand.

"Yep." Cooper nods. "Three down and one to go."

"How is Drew doing?" Violet asks.

"Drew's good." Charlotte tells them. "He's got himself a girlfriend now. Charlotte gestures to Drew and Ruby sitting at a table sampling some chicken wings.

"Good for him." Violet smiles, holding her granddaughter, Clove, who's eight months old already.

"She's getting so big." Charlotte holds the baby girl's hand.

"They all are. Makes me feel ancient." Violet watches Charley and Michael Nikolas run by. "How's Hope doing? Doesn't she still need another surgery?"

"She'll have her next operation when she's four years old to widen the main artery." Charlotte tells Violet.

Addison walks in next with her eight year old granddaughter, Rosie.

Harper runs up to grab Rosie's hand. "Come sit by me."

The two girls run off together.

"They remind me a lot of Andie and Danielle when they were that age." Charlotte tells Addison.

"I know." Addison nods. "They're growing up so fast."

"That means _you're _getting old." Amelia walks over to them. "Give me my granddaughter." Amelia smiles and takes Clove from Violet.

"Speak for yourself." Addison smirks at Amelia. "I'm not a day over forty."

"Okay then I must be twenty-five." Amelia laughs and takes Clove over to see Cole.

"Cole as a grandpa, now that's interesting." Addison tells Charlotte and Violet as she watches him hold Clove.

"He's really good with Clove." Violet tells them. "He built her a little pink dollhouse out of wood and now Pete is building her one to keep at our house."

"A girl can never have too many dollhouses." Charlotte smiles.

"Clove is going to be one spoiled little girl between all her grandparents doting over her." Addison smirks. "I need a drink. Anyone else?"

Charlotte and Violet follow Addison to the bar.

Addison orders a drink before telling them. "I never thought I'd see the day that we were all grandparents."

Charlotte takes her drink from the bartender. "I'd never thought I'd see the day I married Cooper and now I have four children and four grandchildren with him. Who woulda thought." Charlotte shakes her head with a smile.

Addison takes her drink from the bartender. "I remember those days. They seem so long ago."

Violet responds. "Sometimes I wish I could forget those days. Charlotte and Cooper had to elope because we were all at each other's throats during the wedding over my book and the practice falling apart."

"Oh, it wasn't all that bad." Addison sips her drink.

"Maybe not for you." Violet restorts.

"Life is what you make of it." Addison tells them. "You can let it take you down or you can roll with it."

Charlotte tells them. "I hope our kids have it easier than we did. Sometimes you wanna take their pain away, you know, you want to feel the pain so they don't have to."

"Speaking of?" Violet asks. "How are Chase and Michelle doing?"

"I suppose they're trying again." Charlotte sips her drink. She watches Chase and Michelle walk in. "Here they are now."

Chase and Michelle walk into the restaurant. Michelle's wearing a short pink dress, Chase is in a suit. They greet Noah and Marley before going over to sit with Drew and Ruby. Michelle can't help looking over at Amelia who's holding eight month old Clove. She sighs and picks up a chicken wing.

Benn Golder walks in next. "What's he doing here?" Chase asks Michelle.

Nicky's band is playing so Benn has an open invitation since he's their record producer.

"Yay." Chase says, sarcastically. He's a bit jealous of Benn and Michelle's friendship.

Nicky and his band come arrive stage now. They play one song before Nicky calls Chase up to make a toast to Noah and Marley since he's going to be the best man. Chase climbs up on stage and takes the microphone. He gives a long speech, talking about growing up with Noah and meeting Marley.

Benn Golder sits next to Michelle. "How's it going?"

"Fine, I guess." Michelle sighs out.

"You're not fine." Benn looks in her eyes.

"Let's go somewhere private to talk." Michelle rises to her feet and grabs Benn's hand. They walk off to a quiet corner of the restaurant.

"Talk to me." Benn sits down in a chair across from Michelle.

"You know I lost the baby?"

"I'm sorry." Benn holds his hand over hers. "That had to be rough. You were pretty far along this time."

"I was eighteen weeks and it was torture. They admitted me to the labor and delivery floor and induced me into labor. It was horrible, pure torture."

"Well, it's over now." Benn squeezes her hand.

"It was a girl. We were going to name her Emma Charlotte."

"That's a pretty name."

"I liked Emma and Chase wanted to name her Charlotte after his momma." Michelle explains.

"I'm so sorry for your loss. But you can try again."

"I don't want to." Michelle sips her drink. "But Chase does. I'd rather just adopt a newborn. I can't go through that again."

"Are you going to adopt then?"

"Chase wants to adopt an older child from foster care to give them a good life."

Benn sips his drink. "That sounds very philanthropist of him."

"That's how Chase is. He's like his dad. He loves kids."

"And you're opposed to adopting an older child?"

"Not really but I want to adopt a baby too. I want a baby." Michelle takes another sip of her drink.

"So, adopt an older child and a baby." Benn suggests.

"Chase wants us to try again for our own baby because we don't having a problem getting pregnant. I just having trouble staying pregnant. He thinks the third time will be a charm."

"And you don't?"

"If it is it would be the best thing in the world but I just have a bad feeling it won't work out again."

"Why?" Benn asks.

"I feel like I'm being punished for that letter I hid from Chase's. Remember I told you?"

"I remember." Benn nods. "So clear your conscience and give him the letter then your bad luck will be over." Benn puts his glass down.

"I can't give him the letter until we have a baby. If he knows he has a baby with Tess he'll leave me and move to Georgia."

"If you're that insecure about your marriage then leave Chase and come live with me. I already have Benn Junior. He'll love you."

"I can't do that."

"Why not?"

"Because I love Chase."

"More than you love me?" Benn grins.

Chase finishes his speech for Noah and Marley's engagement party. He hops off the stage and looks for Michelle. Drew points her out talking to Benn in the corner.

Chase walks over. "If you don't mind I'd like to dance with my wife."

"Excuse me." Michelle gets up and joins hands with Chase. They walk out to the dance floor.

"What were you talking about with Benn."

"Just stuff."

"What kind of stuff?"

Michelle sighs. "I was telling him how lost the baby."

"That's not any of his business."

"He's my friend, Chase."

"He's your ex-lover and may I remind you he hurt you. He was married when he dated you and never told you until two years into the relationship and then he got his wife pregnant and dumped you. He's a snake."

"He cares about me, Chase."

Chase slow dances with Michelle. "Not nearly as much as I do."

Benn watches Michelle dance with Chase. He gives her a little wave.

Charlotte and Cooper dance beside them now but all eyes are on Noah and Marley.

Soon Amelia and Sheldon join them on the floor. Jolie and Cole dance together because it's their daughter's engagement party. Amelia watches them with a careful eye.

"I can't believe my parents are getting along so great." Marley tells Noah as they dance.

"Are you still holding out hope that they'll get back together?" Noah teases.

"A girl could dream. Maybe we could have a double wedding with my mom and dad."

Noah laughs. "Dylan's mother does not look happy that your parents are dancing."

Marley looks over at Amelia. "No, I'd say Amelia looks pissed."

"Do you think Amelia and your dad are still banging it?"

"I have no idea." Marley watches her mom and dad dance. "We've been away at John Hopkins, my dad doesn't feel the need to fill me in on his love life."

Addison dances with Sam. "I'm going to miss you." Addison whispers to him softly.

"I'm only going to be gone for two months."

"Two months too long." Addison rests her head on his shoulder.

"You'll get to see Rosie almost every day, taking two months to go to New York to visit Maya and Olivia is nothing."

"Tell Naomi I said hi."

"You can come along, Addison. You can tell her yourself."

"No, I can't. I still have patients."

"That's why I told you that you should retire like me." Sam smirks. "I'm living the good life. I can go wherever I want for however long I want. You could come with me. We could tour the world."

"It sounds nice." Addison thinks. "Let's say we'll do that in five years by then Rosie will be a teenager and she won't want to hang out with her grandma."

"I'm gonna hold you to that." Sam hugs Addison as they dance.

Cooper dances with Charlotte. He starts to feel short of breath. His head is all sweaty. "I think I want to sit down." He tells Charlotte.

She looks at him. "Cooper, what's wrong? You're all pale and sweaty."

"I'm okay." Cooper walks to a chair and holds his chest.

"You're not okay." Charlotte looks around the room. Charlotte waves at Addison who's dancing with Sam. "Sam! I need some help over here now."

What's wrong?" Sam and Addison walk briskly over.

"Cooper's all sweaty and having chest pain." Charlotte stresses with tears in her eyes. Cooper hasn't had a heart attack in a years but she's afraid he's having one now.

"Get some aspirin out of my bag in the car." Sam tells Addison.

Addison hurries outside.

Cooper looks at Charlotte. He tells her "Don't make a big deal out of this, Chief. This is Noah and Marley's day."

"Okay, just promise me you'll go to the hospital to get checked out and no one has to know what's going on."

"Okay." Cooper agrees.

Addison hands Sam the bottle of aspirin. "Here take one of these." Sam checks Cooper's pulse and respirations while handing him as aspirin.

Charlotte watches "We should call an ambulance."

"No." Cooper shakes his head. "Everyone will know then. I don't want to ruin their engagement party."

"We need to get you to the hospital." Sam tells Cooper. "I'll help you to the door." Sam looks at Addison. "Go get the car and pull it up to the front door." Sam helps Cooper up and they walk towards the door with Charlotte while Addison runs ahead for the car.

"Is everything alright?" Violet asks.

"We think Coop might be having a heart attack." Charlotte tells her "Cooper doesn't want the kids to know."

"I'll come with you. Let me just grab Pete and my purse."

Pete and Violet follow Addison's car to the hospital.

* * *

_**REVIEWS ARE ALWAYS AWESOME!**_


	53. Chapter 53

_**CHAPTER 53**_

* * *

Sam and Addison help Cooper into the ER. Charlotte runs a head to meet up with the cardiologist. "Collins!" Charlotte calls out. "We think Cooper might be having a heart attack. "He has a history." She tells Dr. Collins.

"What are his symptoms?"

"Pale. Sweaty, chest pains, history of high cholesterol under control with diet and meds." Charlotte's short of breath.

"Okay." Dr Collins walks with Charlotte. "We'll put him in exam room 3. We'll need an EKG and an echocardiogram and take it from there."

Sam pushes Cooper into the exam room in a wheelchair.

"You're all making a fuss over nothing." Cooper tells them, holding onto the upper left side of his chest with his hand. "I'm fine."

Charlotte hastily pulls Cooper's shirt off so the nurses can put the EKG leads on.

"Char!" Cooper looks up. "Calm down or you're going to be the one having a heart attack. I told you, I'm fine."

"Get up on the table and lie down." Charlotte orders as she helps him out of the wheelchair.

Cooper tries to make a joke. "I love it when you're frisky but can't you wait until be get home." He chuckles, clutching the left side of his chest with his hand.

Charlotte's too worried to respond. She helps the nurse put the leads on while Sam turns on the EKG machine. Addison puts an oxygen mask on Cooper. Dr. Collins observes the EKG monitor. "Let's get him up to the cardiac cath lab now." He orders them.

Addison puts her arm around Charlotte.

"I was right." Charlotte breathes heavy and tells Addison. "He said he was fine but I was right." Charlotte tells Dr. Collins. "I'm coming with you."

"You're the Chief." Dr. Collins tells her. "So, it's your call but I rather you not. I work better without the family looking over my shoulder."

"You stay here with Addison." Sam tells Charlotte. "I'll go with Cooper."

Charlotte nods in agreement. She knows how it is having the family breathing down your back while you're tryin' to do your job.

"Come on." Addison leads Charlotte to the waiting room. "Sam's not going to let anything happen to Cooper."

Charlotte sits down in a chair. Her eyes are fierce. "I can't be without him, Montgomery."

"Cooper's had two heart attacks before, Charlotte. He pulled through then and he'll pull through now."

"He's older now. His chances aren't as good."

Violet and Pete come rushing in. "How's Coop?"

"They took him up to the cardiac cath lab to do a balloon angioplasty."

"So it was a heart attack?" Violet asks.

"Appears that way." Charlotte nods.

Violet sits down on the other side of Charlotte and grabs her hand. "He'll be okay. I know he will."

* * *

Andie sits next to Danielle with Hope Charlotte on her lap. Hope grabs at the utensils, Andie pulls them away. Charley drags Michael Nikolas up to Andie. "He's all messy, momma." Charley tells Andie.

"What happened?" Andie asks, looking at her two and a half year old with chocolate smeared all over his hands and face.

"He was eating the candy kisses off the tables." Charley tells his momma.

"Those were supposed to be party favors and it looks like you had a few yourself." Andie tells Charley who also has chocolate on his face. Andie looks around. "Where is my momma?" She doesn't see her so she passes Hope to Danielle. "Can you keep an eye on her while I go wash these two messy boys up?"

"Where's your nanny?" Danielle asks.

"I sent her home an hour ago, she wasn't feeling well."

"Go ahead." Danielle tells her. "I'll watch Hope for you."

Harper and Rosie run up to Danielle. "Can you fix our braids? " Rosie asks her mom. "They came loose when we were dancing."

"I can't right now because I'm holding Hope. Go find grandma and ask her to do it." Danielle tells Rosie.

"Okay." Rosie grabs Harper's hand and searches for Addison.

Andie comes out of the bathroom with Charley and Michael. "No more chocolate." She orders the boys. "It makes you hyper and Lord knows you're both hyper enough." Andie rolls her eyes and sits back down next to Danielle. A few minutes later Rosie and Harper come back. Andie takes Hope back from Danielle.

"Now can you fix our hair, Mommy?" Rosie asks Addison. "You're not holding Hope anymore."

"Come here." Danielle starts unbraiding Rosie's messy braid. "Didn't you find grandma?"

"Nope." Rosie shakes her head. "I couldn't find grandma Addison or grandma Violet or grandpa Pete."

"I couldn't find my Nan or grandpa either." Harper tells them.

Andie gets up now to look around the restaurant with Hope in her arms, leaving Danielle to fix the girls' hair.

Chase and Michelle are dancing. "Have you seen momma or daddy lately?" Andie asks them.

"No." Chase shakes his head.

Andie walks back over to Danielle. "I walked all over the restaurant. It's like our parents all disappeared."

"Maybe they went out for a quickie." Lucas jokes.

"What's a quickie?" Rosie asks.

Danielle gives Lucas a sharp look. "You had to say that. Now you can explain to your daughter what a quickie is while I call my mother."

Danielle hit's the button for Addison.

"Hello." Addison answers.

"Where are you, mom? Andie searched the entire restaurant."

"I'm not at the restaurant." Addison replies.

"You left without telling anyone?" Danielle furrows her brow.

"Cooper was having chest pains so we took him to the hospital. He didn't want to worry anyone." Addison explains.

"Is he okay?"

"They're doing a balloon angio on him now. We'll know more when they're done."

"I hope everything turns out okay."

"Don't say anything to Marley or Noah. Cooper doesn't want to spoil their day for them." Addison instructs.

"What do I say when they ask where everyone went?"

"You're a smart girl, Danielle Montgomery Wilder, something will come to you." Addison hangs up the phone.

"What happened?" Andie asks Danielle.

"Promise you won't freak out on me?"

"Now, you're making me nervous." Andie's eyes go big.

"They took your dad to the hospital. He was having chest pains."

"Oh my God!" Andie jumps out of her seat, holding Hope.

"Don't panic. They're at the hospital and they have it under control. Your parents don't want Noah or Marley to know about it. They don't want to ruin this day for them."

"I better call my momma." Andie picks up her phone to call Charlotte. "Is dad okay?" Andie asks when Charlotte picks up the phone.

"He'll be fine." Charlotte tells Andie, knowing that Andie is stressing.

"I'm on my way."

"Not with those four kids you're not." Charlotte warns her. "I don't want them running all over my ER hyped up on sugar. Stay at the party and I'll call you when I hear something." The truth is Charlotte is too worried about Cooper to baby-sit Andie's kids right now.

Andie hangs up and runs over to Chase on the dance floor. "Dad's at the hospital. He's having chest pains. Momma doesn't want me there with all the kids, can you go?"

Chase looks surprised. "Yeah. We're on our way." Chase and Michelle rush out of the restaurant.

Nicky announces that the waiters will be serving the cake now so everyone should find a seat. Noah and Marley sit in their special high rimmed chairs. Noah looks around. "Where are my parents?"

"I don't know." Marley shrugs while she sticks her finger in her cake and puts some on Noah's nose.

"Hey you're supposed to do that at the wedding, not here." Noah smashes a piece of cake into Marley's mouth.

"Hey." Marley smashes more cake into Noah's mouth. The guests start clinking their spoons on their glasses signifying they want the future bride and groom to kiss. Noah and Marley concede and kiss for everyone.

Andie's overwhelmed with all the kids and looks around for Nicky since the band is on break. She finds him sitting in a corner talking to Benn Golder. "I need help, Nick." She tells him. "The kids are driving me nuts."

Nicky looks up to see Andie holding Hope. Michael Nikolas is tugging at her dress. "Up, momma. I want up." He whines.

"I wanna go home, momma." Charley tugs on the other side of her dress.

Nicky stands up now and picks Michael Nikolas up. "Where's the nanny?"

"She was sick so I sent her home an hour ago."

"Where are your parents?" Nicky looks around.

"At the hospital. My dad's having a heart attack."

Nicky's jaw drops. "Excuse me, I gotta go." He tells Benn.

Benn waves him on. "I understand."

"Should we go to the hospital?" Nicky asks, holding Michael.

Andie's upset now. She answers with tears in her eyes. "My momma doesn't want all the kids there. Chase and Michelle went. Let's just go home."

After they're done with cake, Noah looks around. "Where is my family? I don't see my parents of Chase or Andie anywhere."

Now that cake is over, the rest of the guests say goodbye to Noah and Marley, wishing them luck. When Danielle comes up to say goodbye, Noah asks her. "Have you seen my sister or my parents?"

"Maybe they all went for a walk on the beach. It's a nice night." Danielle tells them, having been instructed not to tell them about Cooper's heart attack.

"Oh?" Noah screws up his face, thinking it's odd that they would all skip cake to walk on the beach together.

Drew overhears. He tells Ruby. "I guess we better go look for them since they're our ride home."

Drew and Ruby head for the beach. They walk and walk until Ruby finally says. "I don't think we're going to find your kin on this beach. I'm sorry to say I think they left without us."

"Yeah," Drew sits in the sand. "I think you're right."

* * *

_**REVIEW**_


	54. Chapter 54

_**CHAPTER 54**_

* * *

Charlotte waits with Addison, Violet and Pete for word on Cooper. Chase and Michelle rush into the waiting room. "What happened to dad?" Chase asks.

Charlotte gets up out of her chair to greet them. "He had a heart attack but we caught it early. I'm hoping it didn't do any damage."

Michelle hugs Charlotte. "We'll wait with you. "

"Thank you." Charlotte sits back down.

"So, what did we miss at the engagement party?" Violet asks.

"The cake." Chase tells them. "Noah and Marley are probably wondering why you all left without saying goodbye. It's kind of strange."

"I'll call them as soon as I hear your father's alright. I don't want to ruin their night. It is their engagement party." Charlotte sighs.

"Remember what happened at Lucas and Danielle's engagement party." Pete reminds.

"How could I forget?" Violet clears her throat. "I took a bullet to the lung."

"And you're fine now." Addison reassures everybody. "Just like Cooper will be."

"He has to be." Chase holds his hands together and looks down. "Michelle and I haven't had a kid yet. You know how my dad loves babies, I can't rest until I see my dad holding my baby."

Michelle rubs Chase's back. "Don't worry, Chase, that day will come. I know it."

"Are you expecting again?" Violet asks Michelle and Chase.

"No." Michelle shakes her head. "But we hope to be soon."

"I thought you were nervous about it?" Chase looks at Michelle. "I thought you wanted to adopt a baby instead."

Michelle tells Chase. "I want to see your face when your father holds our baby. I know how much that will mean to you."

"I'd like to see that too." Charlotte nods. "I want a picture of three generations of the Freedman boys."

Sam and Dr. Collins walk in the waiting room. Everyone jumps up out of their seats. "How is he?" Charlotte asks first.

"He had a 15% occlusion of one of his arteries. We were able to clear it with the balloon. It's not surprising that this happened after all these years." Dr. Collins tells them. "I'm going to increase his dose on his medication and he needs to stick to his diet."

"Yeah, he slips a lot." Chase tells them. "My dad has a sweet tooth."

"He's going to have to watch his cholesterol." Sam looks at Charlotte.

"I'll stay on top of him." Charlotte assures Sam. "When can we see him?"

"You can see him now."

* * *

Andie and Nicky put the kids to bed before meeting up in the bedroom. "How's your dad doing?" Nicky asks.

"My momma called. She said his artery was blocked 15% but they were able to fix it with the balloon thingy."

"So, he doesn't need surgery?"

"Nope." Andie changes into her nightgown.

"That's good." Nicky undresses down to his boxers. "Don't put that thing on." He tells her. "Get over here so we can celebrate."

"What are we celebrating?" Andie pounces down on the bed next to him.

Nicky pulls her in close. "Your dad's going to be okay, your brother and Marley's engagement, all the kids sleeping …-"

"Shut up and kiss me." Andie pulls Nicky on top of her.

* * *

Noah and Marley arrive home. "I can't believe everyone just left without saying goodbye." Noah tells Marley. "That's beyond rude."

"Awe, don't worry, Noah. You got me now." Marley laughs. "I would never ditch you like that."

"Seriously." Noah tells Marley. "I know I've always been the forgotten child but this takes the cake."

"Talk to me, babe." Marley takes Noah's tie off.

"My parents have always fussed over Andie cuz she was the only girl and now they fuss over her kids. Chase has always been their Sweet Fella and Drew's their cute little baby but for them to just ditch me at my own engagement party is low."

Marley kisses Noah on the neck. "Come here, Marz Barz will make you feel better."

* * *

Drew and Ruby sit on the beach. "I can't believe they forgot us here."

Ruby laughs. "It's kind of funny, ya know."

"How are we going to get home?" Drew asks.

"We'll take a cab. I have my credit card on me."

"I guess." Drew gets up.

"You should call your mum and let her know." Ruby stands up.

"No way." Drew shakes the sand off his feet. "My momma forgot me. I'm not calling her. Let's take the cab to your house tonight."

"Okay." Ruby picks up her phone to dial a taxi. "My dad's away as usual."

* * *

Chase and Michelle arrive home. Michelle starts to undress in front of Chase, stripper style.

"What are you doing?" Chase asks.

"Turning you on. Is it working?"

"Come over here." He smiles.

Michelle gives him a lap dance.

* * *

Charlotte visits Cooper in the recovery room. "Hey, you gave us all a good scare."

"I told you I was fine." Cooper answers in a weak voice.

"You weren't fine, Cooper."

Cooper looks at Charlotte's eyes. "You didn't tell Noah and Marley did you?"

"No, but they're probably wondering why we left their party."

"I'll call them tomorrow." Cooper fixes his oxygen mask so he can talk. "Let them have this night."

"Okay." Charlotte agrees.

"What about the other kids?" Cooper asks

"I told Andie and she told Chase. They were worried about you. I just sent Chase and Michelle home."

"What about Drew?" Cooper asks.

"I don't know." Charlotte thinks. "He must have got a ride home with somebody. I'll call him later. He's probably wondering where we are."

* * *

Andie rests her head on Nicky's chest while Nicky smokes a cigarette. "Uhmm." She sighs while rubbing his chest with the palm of her hand. "This is the good life right here with you. I don't want this moment to end, just me and you and the quiet."

Nicky rubs her back. "I know what you mean. It's peaceful."

Andie plants a kiss on his chest. "I'm lucky. All those girls can yell and scream for you when you're on stage but at the end of the night you're all mine."

Nicky puffs on his cigarette. "Those girls think they know me but you're the only one who will ever really know me."

"What were you talking to Benn about last night before I interrupted you? It looked serious."

"Not now, Belle."

"Why not?"

Nicky rubs Andie's back. "Because I don't want to ruin this moment."

"Why would telling me what you and Benn were talking about ruin this moment for us?" Andie lifts her head up to look at Nicky.

"Because you're not going to like it."

Andie rolls onto her back and looks at the ceiling. "Tell me now."

Nicky takes another puff of his cigarette before saying, "Benn wants Broken Spell to do a European Tour."

"What?"

"That's what bands do. We have fans in Europe too. If we want to branch out we need to tour there."

Andie sighs. "For how long?"

"Just a few months, I was thinking maybe you could come with me."

"How can I do that the with the kids? Harper and Charley have school."

"We could leave Harper and Charley with your parents. Harper's ten and Charley's five they should be fine for your parents. We could take Michael Nikolas and Hope Charlotte with us since they're not in school yet."

"But my dad just had a mini heart-attack. I can't keep leaning on them like I do. They're getting older. They're going to need to start leaning on me soon."

"The tour wouldn't start for a few months by then your dad should be recovered. We'll talk about it with your momma and see what she thinks." Nicky kisses the top of Andie's head before putting his cigarette out for the night.

* * *

Chase lies in bed next to Michelle. "You asleep?" He asks.

"Almost." She turns around to face him. "You wore me out tonight but it was fun."

Chase pulls her tight to him. "I knocked you up tonight, for sure."

"How can you be so sure?" Michelle asks.

"We haven't had sex in months. I had a loaded gun and shot it at your target." Chase smiles.

"You dirty boy." Michelle kisses him.

* * *

Drew and Ruby watch television on her couch while eating popcorn and drinking soda. "Can I ask you a question?" Ruby asks.

"Shoot." Drew shoves a handful of popcorn in his mouth.

"If I'm your girlfriend, how come you've never made a move on me? We've been going out for months already."

"I don't know." Drew shrugs.

"Do you think I'm too fat?"

"No." Drew shakes his head.

"Then why?"

"I guess I like you too much." Drew shrugs. " I don't want to go out with you just so I could make it to first base or second base or even third base like Kyle did with Sarah."

"What do you mean?"

"Kyle was using her. She let him get to second base but she wouldn't let him get to third let alone a home run so he dumped her."

"Poor Sarah."

Drew puts another handful of popcorn in his mouth and takes a sip of soda before saying. "I tried to warn her about Kyle but she wouldn't listen to me. She had to learn the hard way."

"What's first base anyway?" Ruby asked. "I know what you mean by a homerun but I don't know the bases."

Drew laughs. "Do you want me to tell you or show you?"

"Would you show me, at least first base tonight?" Ruby's swallows. "We'll see how first base goes before I let you go to second base."

Drew puts his bowl of popcorn and his soda down and starts to kiss Ruby. He lets his hand wander under her shirt.

Ruby breaks the kiss. "What are you doing?"

"Showing you the bases."

"Oh." Ruby kisses him again. He lets his hand wander over her bra and feel around while kissing her.

"I like first base." She tells him.

"Me too." Drew continues to kiss her.

* * *

_**REVIEW**_


	55. Chapter 55

_**CHAPTER 55**_

* * *

Noah and Marley relax on the couch watching TV until the doorbell rings. Noah lets Dylan in. He's holding eight month old Clove. "Where's Lila?" Noah asks.

"Lila's out so I have Clove for the weekend."

"Ooooh we get to see Dylan in daddy mode." Noah chuckles.

Dylan carries the baby into the living room. "Where is everyone?"

"My momma's at the hospital visiting my dad and I guess Drew is at his girlfriend's house." Noah sits back on the couch with Marley.

"You mind if me and Clove hang out with you guys tonight?" Dylan sits on the couch with Clove on his lap.

"No problem." Noah answers. "I guess no joints for you this weekend."

"Nope, not when I'm on daddy duty."

"Come here, Clove." Marley reaches her arms out to hold the baby. "I can't wait to have one."

Charlotte walks in the door.

"How's dad doing?" Noah asks.

"Your dad's doing fine. Dr. Collins wants to keep him in the hospital another day for observation."

Marley bounces Clove on her lap. "Tell him we'll be up to see him tomorrow."

Drew and Ruby walk in the door now.

"Where have you been, Drew?" Charlotte asks. "I've been trying to call you since yesterday and you don't pick up the phone. I was ready to call the police to report you missing."

"Why do you even care?" Drew says, sarcastically. "I'm the forgotten child."

"What are you talking about?" Charlotte furrows her brow.

"Yeah." Noah chuckles. "_I'm_ the forgotten child, not you."

Drew asks Noah, "did they forget about you at the engagement party and leave you stranded there? Did your girlfriend have to pay a cab to take you home?"

"No." Noah answers. "But that's because I have my own car. They left _my_ engagement party without saying anything to me either."

Drew looks at Charlotte. "What's wrong with you? Do you think your job is done now that Andie and Chase are married? Did you forget you have other kids besides them?"

Everyone stares at Drew realizing he doesn't know about Cooper.

Charlotte looks at Drew and tells him in a soft, quiet voice, "your father had a heart attack at the party. That's why we left early and didn't tell anyone. I thought you would catch a ride home with one of your brothers or your sister. I'm sorry if you feel like I forgot you. I could never forget you Drew."

Drew's eyes go wide. "Where's dad? Is he alive?"

"Yes, he's alive, Squirt." Charlotte hugs Drew now. "He's in the hospital, he's going to be okay. We just need to make some adjustments to his medication."

Drew cries on his momma's shoulder. "I'm sorry, momma. I'm a jerk. I should have returned your phone calls."

"It's okay. You didn't know." Charlotte consoles her youngest son.

"Can I go see dad at the hospital? I need to see him."

"Fine." Charlotte grabs her keys and walks out the door with Drew and Ruby.

Noah shakes his head. "Glad we cleared that up, I guess that means I'm still the forgotten child."

"Ha ha." Dylan laughs. "Join the club."

"Oh, stop. How are you the forgotten child?" Marley mocks Dylan. "You're the only son for your mom and you've always been dad's favorite."

"No way." Dylan tells Marley. "You're dad's only girl and Tyler's dad's favorite of the boys."

Marley argues. "No, you're dad's favorite, not Tyler. Dad's always showered you with the most gifts and attention."

"Only because I had Hodgkin's. He was afraid I would die." Dylan shakes a toy for Clove. "Clove will always be my number one, right Clove." Dylan tweaks the eight month olds nose.

"How can you say that?" Marley asks.

"Because I'm not having anymore kids. I'm never getting married."

"How come?" Noah asks.

"I don't see the point in being tied down to one woman. I like my freedom." Dylan bounces Clove on his lap.

"Don't give Noah any ideas before our wedding." Marley smacks her half brother in the arm, playfully.

Noah picks Marley up cradle style. "You see this? This is mine." He swings Marley around while she laughs. "I want to be tied down to this woman until we're one hundred years old."

Clove sits on Dylan's lap and laughs. "You like that, Clove?" Dylan asks.

Marley laughs. "Looks like she likes it." Marley waves at Clove while Noah spins her. "You better find yourself a woman, Dylan."

Dylan stands up and cradles Clove, spinning her like Noah spins Marley. Clove laughs out loud.

* * *

_**Review please. They made it easy for you, just leave a comment in the box below. No more excuses =). And I love to read your feedback.**_


	56. Chapter 56

_**Authors Note -Oops, this is the real chapter 56. I accidentally posted chapter 58 earlier. Sorry!**_

_**CHAPTER 56**_

* * *

Nicky walks in the bedroom after putting the kids to bed. "Are they all hunkered down for the night?" Andie asks.

"Yep." Nicky slides into bed next to her.

"Good." Andie scoots closer to him. "Now momma and poppa could finally have some playtime."

"How about we make our playtime constructive?" He suggests.

"What are you talking about?" She kisses his nose. "Our playtime is always constructive."

"I should have said reproductive."

"What are you talking about?" Andie looks up into his eyes now.

"Hope's going to be two years old soon. I miss having a baby around the house."

"Are you kidding me?" Andie playfully slaps his arm. "You're going to be touring Europe. You won't even be around the house. It'll be me around the house with five kids. No way." Andie rolls back onto her back.

"C'mon, Belle. We make beautiful babies."

"We do, but I'm not taking care of five kids while you're in Europe and I can't depend on my parents. My momma needs to look after my dad now."

"What if I don't go on the road?"

"You have to go on the road. You're the lead singer."

"We'll see." Nicky pulls Andie back over to him. He kisses her. "Enough talking, it's playtime." He tickles her. She laughs. She can't resist his adorable face and the touch of his hands on her bare belly. She presses her lips into his and goes for it.

* * *

Chase should've known that something was up. He's been telling himself for the past two months that Michelle's exhaustion was from working but there's something different about her tonight. The way she's glowing, the way her face looks. "Are you pregnant?" he asks.

"I don't know."

"When was your last period?"

"Three and a half months ago." She shrugs. He hadn't noticed, they've been having sex sporadically when they've been in the mood the past few months.

"Why haven't you done a pregnancy test yet?" He asks.

"Don't sweat. I'm taking pre-natal vitamins as a precaution, just in case."

"You didn't answer my question. Why haven't you done a pregnancy test yet?"

"Positive pregnancy test equals having an ultrasound, having an ultrasound equals disappointment when there's no heart beat, no heart beat equals me crying my eyes out. Get the picture?"

"You're scared. I get it. Come on."

"Where are we going?" She asks.

"We're buying a pregnancy test, you don't have to look. I'll look." Chase drags Michelle out the door.

* * *

"So, according to Dr. Collins" Cooper says as he slides into bed with Charlotte. "We can start having sex again. It's been over three months since my heart attack"

"Mmhmm," Charlotte agrees, absently, her attention focused on her Nook. She's re-reading *The Hunger games fifth sequel* for the umpteenth time.

Smirking, he reaches over and grabs her Nook away from her.

"Hey!" she looks up and scowls at him. "I was readin'."

"And I was talking to you about something important to both of us."

Charlotte lifts one brow. "What do you want to talk about?"

"Sex."

Charlotte sighs, "What about it?"

"It's always been an important part of our life, our marriage, and we haven't been having any for the past three months."

"Because you had a heart attack."

Cooper grimaces. He was really hoping she'd be over her fear by now.

"What?" she says, when she notices the look he's giving her.

"Dr. Collins gave me the okay." Cooper puts his arm around her.

Charlotte stiffens, "Well, _I'm_ not okay with it."

"Why?"

"I'm the one having sex with you so I get the final say."

Cooper scoffs. Did she really just say that? "You get the final say?"

"Yes."

"It's only up to you when we have sex again?"

"You wanna have another heart attack and die on top of me?" She challenges.

Cooper sighs, flops back against his pillow. He can't be mad at her. She's scared of losing him and he knows it.

"I might die if I _don't_ get sex for another night." He warns her.

Charlotte grimaces. "Well at least I didn't play a part in it then." She grabs her nook back from him to continue reading.

Cooper lies on his back, looking up at the ceiling twiddling his thumbs.

* * *

Michelle pees on the stick and hands it to Chase. She goes back to bed.

When the first test turns up positive, Chase feels a rush of excitement. He calls Michelle back in the bathroom to pee on another stick. She looks at him like he's crazy. She barely has any urine left but manages to pee a few drops onto the stick and since she's three months along the pregnancy hormone is concentrated enough in her urine to give another positive result. Michelle goes back to bed. "That's the last one I'm doing tonight."

Chase looks at his watch until enough time passes. When he sees another little plus sign staring up at him, he jumps up and down with excitement and lets out a _"YES!_"

Michelle lies in bed and listens. Looks like she's pregnant after all. "Wonder how far along I'll get this time." She talks quietly to herself, eighteen weeks? Twenty weeks?" Maybe even twenty three weeks, right before the baby is considered viable on it's own. She closes her eyes and doesn't want to think about it.

* * *

Drew stays up late to watch television with Ruby. "It's quiet. I think my parents are sleeping."

"Yeah, so?" Ruby pops some chips into her mouth.

"It's about time we moved to second base."

Ruby looks at him. "If I say no would you break up with me?"

Drew screws up his face. "I'm not Kyle."

"Good."

"Why don't you want to go to second base with me?" Drew gives her his saddest puppy dog look.

"I want to lose weight before I take off my clothes for you."

"Ruby, I like you the way you are, you know that."

"You might but I don't." Ruby tells him.

"You're beautiful, Ruby." Drew leans in to kiss her.

* * *

The next morning Michelle lies on the exam table waiting for Addison to come in, not because she wants to be on Addison's exam table again but because Chase dragged her there.

"Everything's going to be fine," Chase assures her. "I have a good feeling this time. Third time's a charm, you know."

"You don't know that, Chase. I can't do this."

"You're pregnant, you don't have a choice. Just enjoy it." Chase rubs her arm

"I can't enjoy it. I'm waiting for the sky to come crashing down on us when Addison walks in this room and tells us she can't find the heartbeat again."

"I'm hopeful," he says, adding lightly, "You should try it."

"I don't have the luxury to be hopeful," she mumbles, as she runs her hand over her belly. "I can't go through this again. I'm not strong enough."

Addison walks in, "Good morning," she greets, glancing at Michelle's chart. Do you want to start with the exam or the ultrasound?"

"The ultrasound." Both Michelle and Chase answer at the same time. Michelle adds. "No point in prolonging our agony."

Addison smears the warm gel over Michelle's belly.

Michelle swallows hard and squeezes Chase's hand even harder. She turns her head away from the ultrasound machine and squeezes her eyes shut. She tries to imagine she is somewhere else, anywhere, but here. Chase squeezes her hand lightly, and she glances in his direction now. He's watching the monitor while Addison moves the wand around her belly. He doesn't quite manage to hide how nervous he is, too. Addison moves the ultrasound wand around a little more and they all hear it at the same time the baby's heart beat echoes loud and clear throughout the room. Chase grins from ear to ear and tears come to Michelle's eyes, they're safe for now.

Chase exhales, "Do you hear that Michelle? There _is_ a heart beat. Look at the monitor. You can see it. You can see the heart beating."

Michelle stares at the ultrasound machine now. She' speechless. The tears well in her eyes, and a second later he's wiping her cheek dry.

He looks at her. "Isn't that amazing?"

Michelle wipes her watery eyes. She takes a deep breath, sniffles a little, and turns her attention back to Addison. "We heard the heartbeat at ten weeks last time and I lost the heartbeat at eighteen weeks. How do I know we're safe this time?"

"We'll watch you more carefully this time."

Michelle feels has a nervous anxiety in her gut, "When can I consider this pregnacy to be safe?"

"You're thirteen weeks pregnant so you can consider yourself safe now but there are never any guarantees with any pregnancy. I'm considering you a high risk because you lost the last baby at eighteen weeks. We'll watch you closer this time."

Chase squeezes her hand again. He can feel her anxiety.

Addison continues to move the wand around, pointing out the heart, arms and legs.

Chase smiles at the image on the monitor."The good thing about finding out at thirteen weeks is that it's not just a blob. It's got arms and legs already. It looks like a little cartoon baby."

He earns himself a chuckle from both Michelle and Addison and he's happy he got her to smile this morning. Addison prints out some pictures and hands them to Chase. "I'm not going to do an internal exam since you're thirteen weeks and the ultrasound was normal. You need to have a routine pregnancy panel done at the lab. I'll see you again in two weeks." Addison smiles and tells them "Congratulations." Before leaving the room.

"Thirteen weeks, just think, Michelle, we already made it through the first trimester. We beat worrying that whole time." Chase high fives her.

Michelle can't help but be happy for Chase's excitement. "Now we need to get past eighteen weeks. I'm not going to relax until we pass that point."

"Can we tell anyone?" Chase asks.

"Not until I pass the eighteen week mark." Michelle hops off the exam table.

* * *

_**REVIEWS are Delightful! =)**_


	57. Chapter 57

**_A/N - for those of you who read early yesterday morning, I accidentally posted chapter 58 instead of 56. I found the mistake an hour later and fixed it so go back to read the real chapter 56. Sorry about that. It's a busy weekend for me._**

**_CHAPTER 57_**

* * *

Charlotte answers the door to find a tall dark handsome stranger no more than thirty years old standing in front of her. He extends his hand out to shake. "Good afternoon, I'm Trey Walker, Ruby's father. I hear she spends a lot of time at your place."

"Come in,"Charlotte opens the door for him. "It's nice to meet you. Have a seat."

Trey sits on the couch.

"What brings you here today?" Charlotte asks.

"I wanted to introduce myself."

Charlotte sits in the chair across from the couch. "You don't share Ruby's Australian accent."

"I was born and raised in Boston. Ruby on the other hand spent her first fourteen years in Australia with her mother. I moved back to the states when Ruby was four years old."

"You don't look old enough to have a fifteen year old."

"I'm thirty-three. Ruby was born when I was eighteen, but looks can be deceiving. Most people peg me as twenty-five."

"That's what I was thinking." Charlotte smiles.

"You look good yourself. Drew tells me you have four children and four grandchildren."

Charlotte raises her eyebrows. "I can't believe it myself. If someone would have told me I would have four kids when I was your age and that I'd be a grandmother I would have told them to jump in the river."

"Ha, ha." Trey laughs. "I can't imagine myself as a grandfather either. Uhm, that's actually why I'm here."

"I don't follow." Charlotte sits back in her chair and crosses her legs, waiting for Trey to elaborate.

"Like I said, I'm on the road a lot, that leaves Ruby plenty of free time home on her own. She's fifteen now." He sighs. "I wasn't really worried about Ruby and boys before and Drew seems like a nice kid."

"I hear a _but_ coming." Charlotte leans back on the chair waiting.

"_But_, I've noticed a change in Ruby lately. She's lost over twenty pounds in the past few months which is great for her but I'm wondering why the sudden change."

Charlotte leans forward now. "Like you said, she's fifteen, she's getting older. Her appearance is becoming more important to her. She's started wearing make-up and dressing differently."

"I noticed that too." Trey tells Charlotte. "I'm all for my daughter being happy but I don't want her to get hurt. Ruby's had enough hurt in her life, her mother rejected her when she remarried."

Charlotte nods. "I know Drew would never intentionally hurt Ruby. He cares about her but I will talk to him."

"Thank you." Trey gets up. "I can't change what I do for a living or that I travel but I'd appreciate it if you keep an eye on Drew and Ruby when I'm away so I'm not a grandpa before I turn thirty-five."

"I've got it under control." Charlotte rises to her feet and smiles. "Believe me, I've got it, Mr. Walker."

"You can call me Trey."

Cooper comes down the stairs in his robe. He's clearly caught off guard to find the handsome young stranger standing in his living room talking to his wife. "I didn't know we had company?"

Charlotte looks at Cooper. His hair all a muss. "This is Trey Walker, Ruby's father."

"Nice to meet you." Cooper looks down the steps at him.

"Nice to meet you sir." Trey notices Cooper is disheveled. "Sorry to wake you. I was just leaving." Trey walks toward the front door.

Charlotte follows him. "We should exchange numbers."

Trey takes out his phone, Charlotte does the same. They plug each others numbers in their phones before they say good bye. After Trey leaves, Cooper comes down the stairs. "He's a little young to be Ruby's father."

"He's thirty-three."

"He told you how old he was? That's a little personal." Cooper pours some coffee. "What else did he tell you, his shoe size?" Cooper raises his eyebrows up and down.

Charlotte stands with her hands on her hip. "He wanted to meet me because he's concerned about Drew and Ruby."

"Looked like he had more on his mind than that. I saw the way he was looking at you."

"He's half my age, Cooper." Charlotte still has her hands on her hips. "I can't believe you're jealous."

"Come on, Chief. We haven't had sex in months. You need it and you're not getting it from me."

"You're unbelievable, Cooper. I haven't given you any reason not to trust me. Why would I start now?" Charlotte huffs out of the kitchen annoyed that Cooper doesn't think he can trust her.

Cooper rubs his head. "Sorry." He says quietly knowing she can't hear him.

* * *

Michelle meets Benn Golder for lunch. "I was surprised to hear from you today." Benn sits down in a chair across from her.

"I needed to talk to someone who understands me." Michelle watches him sit down.

"What's wrong with your husband?"

"I can't talk to Chase about this."

"Oooh. Now I'm excited." Benn tells Michelle. "Talk to me, kid."

"I'm fifteen weeks pregnant. We found out two weeks ago."

"That's great. Fifteen weeks is pretty far, so you're safe." Benn looks at the menu.

Michelle sighs. "I lost the last one at eighteen weeks."

"I thought that was just a fluke?"

Michelle swallows. "Yeah but it could happen again."

"It won't. Lightening never strikes in the same place twice. So, lighten up, kid, be happy. This is what you always wanted."

"I can't help it." Michelle looks Benn in the eyes. "I feel like I'm being punished. I feel like I have a black cloud over me because I hid that letter about Chase's first born with his ex fiancé."

"So, fess up and tell him, clear your conscience if you feel like it will lift the black cloud." Benn advises.

"I can't yet."

"Why not?"

"Because if Chase knows he already has a son, he'll be on the first plane to Georgia. He'll forget about me. I have to have this baby first so he'll stay."

"Let me get this straight?" Benn asks. "You're going to give him the letter after you give birth to this baby?"

"_If_ I give birth to this baby. I'm only fifteen weeks, so much can still go wrong before I reach my due date…-."

"Okay." Benn raises his hand to stop her from talking. "Assuming everything goes right and you deliver this baby, you plan to give Chase the letter and sonogram photos of his first child then?"

"I don't plan on giving them to him. I plan on leaving them somewhere where he can find them. I don't want him to ever know I hid them from him. I just want him to think they were misplaced."

"I don't get it, if he finds the letter he's still going to want to be in the kid's life."

"Yes." Michelle nods. "But I'll have his second baby by then and I'm his wife. I have that as an advantage. Maybe Tess will be married to that boyfriend of hers by then. Maybe they're raising the boy together. This way Chase will stay in California with me and our baby and just have visits with his son from Tess."

"Sounds like a plan, so why do you need me? Why did you ask me out to lunch?"

"I need to know that I'm still a decent human being. I know you'll be honest with me. Do you think I'm a horrible, evil person for taking that letter and hiding it from Chase? " Michelle rambles on. "Do you think that's why I'm being punished and having all these miscarriages? Some kind of karma?"

Benn sighs. "I don't think that's why you're having the miscarriages. Evil people have children. It's not something reserved only for the kind hearted."

"Thanks." Michelle screws up her face. "So, do you think I'm evil?"

Benn grabs Michelle's hand. "I understand why you did what you did. You were willing to do whatever it took to keep the man you loved. I get that but in the grand scheme of things it wasn't a good move, Michelle. You're keeping a father and son from knowing each other and that's not cool. If Chase ever found out you did that he'd never forgive you for it."

"That's why Chase isn't going to find out. I'll leave the letter behind his file cabinet and then we'll happen to move it one day and find the letter. I want him to know about his son just not yet, not until I have a baby with him."

Benn nods.

Michelle continues, "besides Tess isn't innocent either. Her boyfriend told Chase that he was the baby's father. I don't think Tess even wants Chase in the kid's life anymore."

"Can you blame her?" Benn asks. "Chase cheated on her with you while she was obviously already pregnant and then he turns around and marries you. As far as Tess knew Chase read that letter and chose you over her and her baby. She probably hates him for that."

"That's what I'm hoping." Michelle smacks her lips together.

"You know you could simplify your life now."

"How?" Michelle asks.

"You could leave Chase and come back to me. Let Chase find the letter. Your black cloud will be gone forever."

"I can't do that." Michelle shakes her head. "Not while I'm pregnant with Chase's kid."

The waitress comes over to take their food order.

Chase walks in the restaurant with Lucas and Danielle for lunch. "Isn't that Michelle over there?" Lucas points to her table.

Chase walks over. "Michelle? What are you doing here?"

"Eating lunch. What does it look like?" Benn laughs.

Michelle looks up at Chase. "I wanted to tell Benn the good news, that we're pregnant. He's a good friend of mine. You know that."

"Then you wouldn't mind if Lucas, Danielle and I join you for lunch?" Chase asks.

"Of course not." Michelle gets up to give Chase a hug and kiss. She makes sure it's a long enough kiss to make him feel secure.

They ask the waiter to pull up more chairs so they can all eat together.

* * *

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	58. Chapter 58

_**CHAPTER 58**_

* * *

Drew and Ruby walk home from school together. "It feels like we're wagging school." Ruby drops her science book.

Drew bends down to pick it up. "But we're not. I love half days."

"Me too. What shall we do for the rest of the afternoon?" Ruby asks.

Drew smiles. "Go to second base?"

"Not until I drop some more weight." Ruby smacks Drew on the butt.

"Come on. " Drew laughs. "How long are you going to make me wait? I told you I think you look good."

"Not until _I_ feel like I look good." Ruby looks ahead. "Is that Sarah smoking weed with those other kids?"

"Yeah." Drew nods. "It doesn't surprise me since she broke up with Kyle, it's like she has something to prove."

'"I kinda feel sorry for her." Ruby looks on.

"Don't." Drew knows the way Sarah talks about Ruby because of her weight issue.

"Hey Drew!" Sarah calls out. "You wanna hang out with us this afternoon?"

"No thanks." Drew calls back.

"How bout you Ruby? I heard weed makes you lose weight. You should give it a try." Sarah calls out to Ruby.

"Ignore her." Drew tells Ruby. "She's gotta be high to say that."

"Do you think she's right? Does weed make you lose weight? I'm willing to try anything." Ruby walks along with Drew.

"No. Weed gives you the munchies. It'll probably make you gain weight." Drew suggests.

"Oh, then I'm staying far away from that stuff."

"They say cigarettes make you lose weight."

"Really?" Ruby's ears perk up.

"Yeah, the tobacco kills your appetite and people who smoke reach for a cigarette instead of a cookie, you know." Drew explains as they walk home.

"Come to think of it everyone I know who smokes is skinny. How often do you see a thick person smoking?"

"Like never." Drew answers. "But then you have to worry about getting lung cancer."

"So my choices are be thick and miserable forever or die of lung cancer when I'm old?" Ruby twists her lips together while she thinks.

"Nicky's been smoking ever since I've known him and he's fine." Drew adds.

"Nicky is a cool cat." Ruby adds. "Let's go this way." Ruby pulls Drew by the arm.

"Why?"

"We're going to buy us some durrys."

"You mean cigarretes?"

"Uh..huh."

* * *

Nicky walks in the front door as Charlotte walks out. "See ya" She tells her son in law.

"What's going on?" Nicky asks. " Why was your momma here again? I thought we weren't going to lean on her as much?"

"I had to call her. The kids have a half day of school today. Charley was running a fever and Hope had an appointment with the cardiologist this afternoon. I can't be everywhere at the same time so I had to call my momma."

"What about my mother? You can call her too."

"That woman can't stand me. I'm not asking her for any favors."

Nicky takes off his leather jacket. "She's their grandmother too. She should help out."

Andie picks up the toys that are scattered on the floor. "If you want your mother to help out then you call her, cause I'm not."

"What about hiring a nanny? Broken Spell is doing good. We can afford it."

"Ha," Andie laughs. "You don't want to call you mother either."

"I don't want to hear her bitch about how she only had two kids and we shouldn't have had four kids if we couldn't handle it."

"Sounds like something your mother would say but ask her to take Michael Nikolas, if you want. She loves him because he looks like a mini you."

"We really should look into a nanny. This way you don't have to bother your parents for help so much." Nicky suggests.

"My momma was raised by nannies and hated it." Andie folds up the baby stroller.

Nicky grabs Andie by the waist and pulls her down onto his lap on the couch. "Last I checked you weren't your momma."

"I'm not."

"We're hiring a nanny." He tells her before pressing her down into the couch with his kisses.

Harper walks in the room with her friend. "Oh no, not again." She pulls her friend by the arm. "My parents are weird. Let's go play at your house today."

Nicky looks at Andie, "I guess I shouldn't have done that in the middle of the afternoon. Where are the other three?"

"Hope and Michael are having late naps because it was a crazy day and Charley is watching tv in the playroom."

"Good." Nicky picks Andie up. "Momma and poppa can play then." He carries her up to the bedroom.

* * *

Chase comes home from work. Michelle is making dinner in the kitchen, she comes out to greet him. "I made one of your favorites for dinner."

"What's that?"

"Eggplant parmesan. Can't you smell it?"

Chase inhales the air. "It smells delicious but why'd you make a big dinner? We went out for a big lunch today."

Michelle pats her belly. "I'm eating for two."

Chase smiles at that. It's the first time she's acknowledged her pregnancy in a positive light. He knows she's afraid she's going to lose this pregnancy like she did the other two.

"Why the sudden change?" He smiles.

"Because I'm starving and I'm actually starting to feel pregnant. Couldn't button my pants this morning. I actually had to go out and buy some maternity stuff. I threw out all my maternity clothes from the last time but I was smart this time, I only bought two pairs of pants and a couple shirts just in case."

"Here we go again." Chase rolls his eyes as he sits down.

"Why are you so mopey today?" Michelle hugs his neck.

"I don't want you to talk to Benn Golder anymore." There he said it.

"Chase? Benn is one of my only good friends. I asked him out to lunch today to tell him I was pregnant. I didn't want him finding out through the grapevine."

"Benn is not just a friend. You were madly in love with the guy before you met me. Benn has an agenda." Chase picks up his fork.

"I'm married to you and pregnant with your child, Chase. You have nothing to worry about."

"You admitted to me once that you still had feelings for Benn."

Michelle scoops eggplant onto her plate. "Because you admitted to me that you still had feelings for Tess."

"That's different." Chases scoops up some eggplant with a fork.

"How?" Michelle sits down.

"Tess lives in Georgia. I never see her let alone talk to her. She has a child with another man. Tess and I are over."

"And Benn and I are over."

"Not if you still have feelings for him and you still talk to him, meet him for lunch. How do you think that makes me feel?"

"How do you think I felt that time you left before my sonogram to go run and see Tess at the hospital?"

"Her mother was dying and I was back in time for your sono."

"Admit it, Chase, you still have feelings for Tess, maybe you're still even in love with her." Michelle throws her napkin down.

Chase see's that this conversation is going in the wrong direction. He puts his napkin down and grabs hold of Michelle's hand. "No matter how I felt or feel about Tess, it's over. Things could never be the same, Tess has a son with another man and you're having my baby. I'm yours.'

Michelle squeezes his hand and looks at him through teary eyes. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. Now can you just do me a favor and ease of your friendship with Benn? I need you. I need it to be just you and me for now on and whatever babies come along."

"Okay."

* * *

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	59. Chapter 59

**_CHAPTER 59_**

* * *

_**Three Weeks Later -**_

"It's a good thing we decided to wag out of school today." Ruby tells Drew.

"Why's that?" Drew smokes a cigarette.

"I didn't study for that history exam. I would have failed it. How about, you write me a sick note and I'll write one for you." Ruby puffs on her cigarette.

"You're getting good at smoking that." Drew tells her. "You're not coughing anymore."

"I hated the taste of it at first but now I think it's quite nice and I've lost ten more pounds since I weighed myself last month. I've been grabbing a durry when ever I have the urge for a snack."

"You look great." Drew puffs on his cigarette now. "When do you think we can get to second base?"

"After I lose thirty more pounds, I think."

"Ruby? I'm not asking for a homerun. I just want to go to second base with you." Drew pleads.

"Okay, maybe after twenty more pounds. Let's study for that history exam now."

Drew sighs and opens his history book.

* * *

Michelle nervously waits on the exam table for Addison to walk in. She looks at her watch. "She's already ten minutes late. How long is she going to prolong our torture?"

Chase paces back and forth. "I know. She knows what happened the last time you were eighteen weeks pregnant. I wish she would just get here so we could get this over with."

"Hey!" Michelle protests. "You're supposed to be the confident one and tell me that everything will be okay, that I'm worrying over nothing." Michelle watches Chase pace the room.

"Sorry," Chase stands by her side and holds her hand now. "Everything's gonna be alright." Truth is, Chase is just as nervous as Michelle.

"Try saying it like you mean it." Michelle smirks at her husband.

Addison walks in the room. "Sorry to keep you waiting. I got tied up with my last patient."

Chase starts to pace again. "Michelle's eighteen weeks. You remember what happened last time. You had to induce her because there was no heartbeat."

"I remember." Addison washes her hands before walking over to the sonogram machine to put them out of their misery. She rubs gel on Michelle's belly and starts the machine. As soon as she presses the wand into Michelle's belly they hear –lub-dup-lub-dup echo through the room.

"Thank God!" Chase exclaims before giving Michelle a kiss on the forehead. "Thank God." He says again, looking up at the ceiling.

Michelle looks at the monitor now. "Does everything look okay? Does the baby appear normal for eighteen weeks?"

Addison moves the wand around Michelle's belly. "Everything looks fine. You two need to relax."

"Have you ever lost a baby eighteen weeks into a pregnancy Dr. Montgomery, and have to be induced to deliver a dead fetus?" Michelle spurts out. "If so, then you can tell me to relax but if not then you can't possibly understand what we are going through."

"I'm sorry." Chase tells Addison. "We've both been extremely stressed about this pregnancy because of what happened last time."

"I understand." Addison nods while still doing the ultrasound. "And to answer your question, no, I adopted Danielle. I haven't been in your position but I have dealt with families that have. They've gone on to produce healthy pregnancies after their loss so I'm telling you both to relax. Stress is not good for a pregnancy. It can cause you to go into premature labor if you're stressed enough."

"Okay." Chase nods. "We'll try and relax from this point on."

Michelle remains quiet.

Addison explains. "The last time the fetus had a knot in the cord. The fetus died from placental insufficiency. It's rare but it happens. I have no reason to believe it will happen to you again." Addison points to the monitor. "The baby is healthy. It's the right size and shape, the baby is right on target for eighteen weeks so you shouldn't worry any more than any other couple."

"Okay." Michelle swallows and nods.

"Would you like to know the sex?" Addison asks them.

Chase and Michelle look at each other. They were so worried about the heartbeat they never discussed finding out the sex.

"Do you?" Michelle asks Chase.

"Yeah. Do you?"

"Okay." Michelle looks over at the monitor and smiles for the first time.

Addison moves the wand around. "Lucky for us your daughter is being cooperative today."

"Our daughter?" Michelle looks up at Addison.

"It's a girl." Addison smiles at them.

Chase looks at Michelle. "Emma Charlotte?"

"No," Michelle shakes her head. "We couldn't use her name."

Addison looks at Chase, curious.

"That's what we named the last baby girl, the one we lost at eightteen weeks."

"Ah, yes I remember it was a girl."

"How about Emily Michelle?" Chase asks Michelle.

"Maybe." Michelle shrugs. "I kinda like the name Grace now."

"Grace?" Chase thinks. "That's a new one. You never mentioned it the last time we were talking about names."

"It just came to me while I was watching her on the monitor. I was thinking that she was okay by the grace of God. That's how I thought of Grace."

"We could call her Emily Grace." Chase suggests.

"Or Grace-Anne." Michelle thinks. "My mother's name was Anne. We gave the last one your momma's first name."

Chase thinks. "Grace Anne Freedman? I suppose, but I kinda still like Emily."

"We don't have to name her today. We can think about it." Michelle sits up now.

Addison jokes. "If you're looking for a girl's name, I hear Addison's nice."

Michelle smiles and hops off of the table. "Thank you, Dr. Montgomery."

"I'll see you again in two weeks unless there's a problem." Addison writes in her chart.

"Why should there be a problem?" You just said everything looks good." Michelle asks.

"Everything does look good. Relax. Remember what I told you about too much stress and premature labor." Addison warns.

"Come on." Chase grabs Michelle's hand. "We're making you an appointment for a massage at the spa."

* * *

Nicky comes home from work early. "To what do I owe this surprise?" Andie walks over to greet him.

"I lined up a few nannies to come over for us to interview."

"You're kidding?" Andie drops her jaw.

"I'm dead serious. We need the help and I can afford it now." Nicky plops down on the couch with the newspaper.

"I suppose if we hired a nanny, I could go back to work at least part time at the animal hospital." Andie sits down next to him.

"That's not why I'm hiring the nanny, Belle, not so you can go back to work. I'm hiring her to give you a break so you'll consider having another baby."

"But we already have four." Andie screws up her face.

"Broken Spell is doing real good. We can afford another kid, no problem."

Andie shakes her head. "I don't know, Nicky."

"Come on, Belle." Nicky slides his hand between her legs while he leans in to kiss her. "We make the cutest kids ever."

"I know we do but I'm good with four, really good." She kisses him.

"You'll be even better with five." He laughs and tickles her. She laughs and tries to tickle him back but the doorbell rings.

Nicky stands up. "That would be nanny number one."

* * *

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	60. Chapter 60

_**CHAPTER 60**_

* * *

Charlotte drives to the gym, Andie sits in the passenger seat while Michelle and Ruby sit in the back seat.

Andie speaks first. "Thanks for taking me as your guest momma."

Ruby tells Michelle."Same here, thanks for taking me along as your guest for the evening. My dad already told me I could sign up for a membership if I enjoy it tonight." Ruby announces to the women in the car.

"My dad told me I can sign up for a membership if I like it too." Andie answers.

"He did, did he?" Charlotte looks at Andie.

"Oops, my bad, did I say my dad? I meant Nicky. Nicky told me to sign up for a membership if I like it."

Michelle opens her window. She's sitting in the back of the car with Ruby.

"Are you warm, Michelle?" Charlotte asks, looking in the rearview mirror.

"No, I didn't want to say anything but it reaks of cigarette smoke in here. It's making me nauseous so don't mind me while I stick my face out the window for some fresh air." Michelle tells her.

"My dog does that too." Ruby chuckles.

"I don't know why it should smell like smoke in here." Charlotte looks at Michelle through the mirror again. "I don't smoke."

"Maybe it's me." Andie sniffs her own hair.

"Since when did you take up smoking?" Charlotte asks.

Andie sniffs her shirt now trying to find the source of the smell. "I don't smoke but Nicky does, maybe it rubbed off of his clothes onto me."

"Ugh." Charlotte grimaces. "Do you two ever stop?"

Ruby raises her hand from the back seat. "I'm the culprit. It's me who smells of smoke. I'm sorry."

"You smoke?" Michelle turns to look at the fifteen year old.

"Drew suggested it would be a good way to lose weight."

Charlotte's jaw drops. "If my son told you to take up smoking to lose weight, I'll kill him."

"No." Ruby answers in her Australian accent. "I quite like it. I've lost several pounds already."

Michelle offers advice. "Smoking defeats the purpose if you're trying to lose weight for health reasons. You're trading the extra pounds for lung cancer."

Ruby reminds. "Nicky smokes and he hasn't got lung cancer."

"Not yet." Charlotte responds. "Have you ever tried to get him to quit?" She asks Andie.

"Momma, Nicky's been smoking since before I started dating him and he's stubborn. He's not going to quit."

"Speaking of Nicky, aren't you the kept woman?" Michelle teases Andie now. "Chase says Nicky hired you a nanny and he's buying you a gym membership?"

"Nicky will do anything for me if I agree to…-" Andie decides not to finish her sentence.

"Agree to what?" Charlotte looks over at Andie.

"Never mind."

"You have to tell us now." Michelle insists. "You can't start a sentence like that and leave us hanging."

"Okay fine. Nicky will do anything I ask as long as I agree to have another baby." There she said it.

"Are you bonkers?" Charlotte scowls. "You already have four."

Andie looks out the window. Michelle and Ruby stay quiet in the back seat now.

"Don't tell me you're considerin' it?" Charlotte scoffs.

"I have to consider it, momma. Nicky's my husband and it's something he really wants. I didn't say I agree with him. I think four is enough but I have to consider it because he's my husband."

Ruby breaks her silence. "Why does Nicky want so many kids?"

"He enjoys them, and we can afford it. His band is doing well." Andie tells them.

"Chase wants a big family too." Michelle joins in. "But I'm struggling just to have one."

"I thought you were doing okay with the pregnancy?" Andie asks.

"I'm twenty weeks, Addison says everything is going great but I've lost two pregnancies so it's scary for me." Michelle responds.

"I can see how that could make you a nervous wreck." Andie agrees.

Michelle nods. "I'll relax once I reach twenty-four weeks because that's when they say the fetus can survive on it's own outside of the mother's body."

"Still, that's very young." Charlotte tells her. "A normal pregnancy is forty weeks. You want to try and get there."

Ruby adds. "I never knew having a baby was such scary business."

"I have four kids." Andie tells her. "And so does my momma. It's not that scary."

Charlotte informs Michelle. "I've had a couple of miscarriages between Noah and Drew. You'd be surprised at how many women have gone through it. It'll work out for you just like it did for me. I went on to have Drew and he was as healthy a baby as they come."

"Thank you." Michelle rolls up her window. "I appreciate the support."

"Here we are." Charlotte pulls into a parking spot at the gym. The ladies all get out.

* * *

Chase comes over to watch the Laker's game with Cooper and Drew. "Here dad, I brought a case of beer." Chase places it on the table near the couch.

Cooper sets out some popcorn and chips for the kids. "Too bad Noah isn't here." Cooper sits on the couch and puts his feet up, sipping a beer.

"Rotten kid has to be away at medical school." Chase teases.

"Is Nicky coming?" Drew asks, sneaking a beer from the case.

"No." Cooper shakes his head. "Andie went to the gym with the ladies tonight so Nicky's got daddy duty."

"That's good." Drew sips on a beer. "Let him see how rough Andie has it by herself all day with those four kids. Michael Nikolas is wild just by himself."

"He can be a handful." Cooper laughs. "But he's no match for you when you were that age, Squirt."

"No way." Drew scoffs. "I was not that hyper."

"Oh yes you were." Chase agrees with Cooper. "Uncle Sheldon used to hate watching you and Sarah when you were little. You'd drive him crazy, bouncing off the walls."

Drew shrugs. "Well, it's good that Nicky gets to see how it is for Andie home alone with the kids while he's at work all day."

"I wouldn't mind being in Nicky's shoes." Chase tells them. "Nicky's got everything I want."

"What are you talking about?" Cooper sips his beer. "Nicky has a rock band, you're a doctor."

"I don't mean work wise. I mean family wise." Chase tells Cooper. "Nicky's married to the girl he loves and has four children." Chase knocks on the wood table. "Knock on wood, one day Tess and I will have a big family like Nicky and Andie have."

Drew's eyes open wide. "You just made a big slip up. You said you and _Tess_ would have a big family one day."

"I did not." Chase scoffs. "I said Michelle."

"Uh-uh." Drew insists. "You said Tess. It must have been a Freudian slip."

"I said Michelle."

"You said Tess." Drew argues.

"Dad? Help me out." Chase looks at Cooper.

Cooper sips his beer. "I wish I could but Drew's right. You said Tess."

"Are you still hung up on Tess?" Drew asks. "Because that's not fair to Michelle if you married her when you were still in love with Tess.

"Michelle and I discussed this before we got married. She was in love with Benn Golder until he broke her heart like Tess broke mine. We bonded because we were both jilted by the people we loved."

Cooper reminds Chase. "Uh…You cheated on Tess….with Michelle. Are you sure you weren't the one who broke her heart?"

"I admit that I made a mistake, a huge mistake, by cheating on her but Tess took off and left town. She didn't give me a chance to explain or to apologize, she took off for Georgia, met Damien and had his baby. Yeah, Tess broke my heart." Chase slams his bottle of beer on the table.

"Easy boy." Drew holds his hand up to Chase. "It seems we struck a nerve." Drew sips his beer.

"Hey!" Cooper sees that Drew has a beer now. "How'd you get that?"

Drew laughs. "I've been drinking it the whole time, dad. You didn't say anything so I thought it was okay."

"Good parenting, dad." Chase says, sarcastically, while he opens another beer for himself.

"Hey!" Cooper tells Chase. "You didn't notice he had a beer either."

"I'm not his father." Chase smirks.

"Give me that!" Cooper grabs the beer away from Drew. "Nice try though, son. Now everyone be quiet and watch the game."

The three Freedman men lean back on the couch and watch the Laker's game.

* * *

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	61. Chapter 61

_**CHAPTER 61**_

* * *

Andie meets Michelle for lunch. "Wow! Look at you." Michelle tells Andie as she joins her at the table. "All pretty in pink today and without your crew following you."

"I'm testing out the nanny." Andie picks up the menu.

"Is that why you asked me out to lunch?" Michelle reads her menu. "Because you want to see how the nanny does on her own with all the kids?"

"Partially." Andie licks her lips

"What's the other part." Michelle looks up from her menu to ask.

"I wanted to talk to you."

"About what?"

"Well, for one, do you think I'm crazy for entertaining the thought of having a fifth child?"

Michelle answers. "Not at all, as long as you can afford it and obviously you can. Chase wants a big family too but I haven't been as blessed as you have by the fertility Gods. I have no trouble getting pregnant, my body just has trouble staying pregnant."

Andie picks up her water to sip. "You're doing okay this time. You passed the twenty week mark and you look great."

"I feel great." Michelle and Andie stop talking a minute to order their food. After they order Michelle resumes the conversation. "If Nicky wants another kid, what's stopping you from it?"

"For one, my momma thinks it's nuts."

Michelle laughs. "Well, that shouldn't stop you. You're a grown ass woman. You don't need to listen to your momma anymore."

"I've leaned on my parents a lot for help but if this nanny works out I won't need to."

"So, what else?" Michelle sips her water.

"Benn's setting up for Broken Spell to do a European Tour. That means Nicky will be away again. I don't want to be pregnant or have the baby without him."

"That's understandable." Michelle agrees. "What does Nicky say about that?"

"He's trying to put off the tour but you know Benn. He's persistent."

"Benn's doing his job. It's his job to promote the band and make as much money as possible. A European tour will be good for Broken Spell." Michelle explains.

"Figures you would defend Benn." Andie sighs.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Michelle puts her water glass down.

"You dated him for a few years."

"Yeah, but we're just friends now although your brother hates it."

Andie laughs. "Is Chase jealous?"

Michelle rubs her belly. "I went out to lunch with Benn to tell him I was pregnant and Chase got mad. He told me he didn't want me to talk to Benn anymore. Do you think that's fair?"

Andie shrugs. "I guess he must feel insecure about your relationship with Benn."

The waitress delivers the food.

"But I'm married to Chase and I'm having his kid. Why should he be insecure about me and Benn being friends?"

"Just think" Andie digs into her salad. "How would you feel if Tess moved back to town and Chase went out to lunch with her. Would you want them to be friends?"

"No."

"Why not?" Andie asks.

"Because I know there's some unresolved feelings there."

"Chase probably thinks that there are unresolved feelings between you and Benn."

"It's different." Michelle shakes her head. "I'm choosing Chase. Chase knows that. I could have left him for Benn a long time ago but I didn't. I chose Chase."

"How's that different? Chase chose you too." Andie sticks her fork into her salad

"Chase only asked me to marry him because Tess left him that's how it's different." Michelle swallows.

"So why would you choose my brother, marry him and have his baby if you think you're second place to Tess?"

"Because I love him even if I think he may be in love with someone else. She's far away and he can't have her so he has me." Michelle picks her fork up.

"I don't think Chase loves Tess anymore." Andie holds her fork up.

"Why?"

"I think he did when she first left but after he found out she had a baby with Damien, I think, he hates her now."

"Really?" Michelle furrows her brow.

"Yep." Andie nods. "All Chase ever wanted was to get married and start a family. Tess was postponing it with him then she moved to Atlanta and had a baby with this stranger. That's just wrong. I don't know what's going on in her mind."

Michelle shrugs.

"Enough about Tess." Andie tells her. "How are you feeling? Did you and Chase agree on a name yet?"

"I like Grace-Anne. I feel like I'll deliver this baby to term by the grace of God and Anne was my mothers name."

"So, is that going to be my niece's name?"

Michelle plays with her salad. "I don't know. Chase wanted to name a girl Emma Charlotte but that's the name we assigned to the last baby that I lost at eighteen weeks. I don't feel right sticking with that name."

"What about Chase?"

"He agrees." Michelle wipes her mouth with a napkin. "He wants to change it up a bit to Emily Charlotte or Emily Michelle so we'll have to see who wins out."

Andie offers. "You're the one who has to give birth so I vote for Grace-Anne."

Michelle grins. "Remind your brother of that. Chase can be pretty stubborn when he wants something."

* * *

Chase comes home from work. "Where were you at lunch today? I missed you in the kitchen at the office."

"I skipped out early and went out to "Luigi's" for lunch today." Michelle answers

Chase makes a sour face. "Let me guess you met Benn for pizza."

"Wrong." Michelle kisses him. "I met your sister for lunch."

"Why?"

"She wanted to ask my opinion about something that's been on her mind."

"About what?" Chase asks, curious.

"Okay, I'll tell you. Nicky wants another kid. Your momma thinks they're crazy for even talking about number five so she wanted my opinion."

"What'd you tell her?"

"I told her to go for it?"

Chase screws up his face. "Why?"

"They can afford it. Why not?"

"Because she's going to be calling my momma for help every ten minutes and I want my momma to have time and energy left for our baby." Chase groans.

"Nicky hired a nanny so they don't have to lean on your parents. She was trying out the nanny while she went to lunch with me."

"Oh, okay then." Chase wanders into the kitchen. "Then Andie and Nicky can have as many kids as they want as long as they don't spread my parents too thin."

Michelle smiles. "I'm sure Grace-Anne will get plenty of atttention from your parents. She'll be _our _first child."

"You mean Emily Charlotte?" Chase grins.

"Andie agrees I should pick the name since I have to give birth to her."

"But I'm the one who painted the nursery and set up all the heavy furniture in the nursery for her." Chase teases.

"Ooooh." Michelle puts her hand over her belly.

"Is everything okay?" Chase starts to worry.

"Yeah," Michelle nods. "I can feel her moving. Here!" She takes his hand and holds it over her belly. "Feel here."

Chase's eyes light up. "That is so cool. Hello, Emily Charlotte. This is daddy."

Michelle rolls her eyes.

* * *

Andie's in bed when Nicky gets home from work. "How was your day?" He throws his jacket on the bed and starts to undress.

"I left the nanny alone with the kids for a few hours."

"How'd it go?" Nicky slips out of his jeans.

"The kids love her and she seems to be able to handle all of them." Andie watches him.

"I guess that's why she's a nanny. They like kids and babies."

Andie raises her eyebrows up and down. "I like babies too."

"Yeah well," Nicky pulls his socks off. "I said I'd give you another one but you won't let me."

Andie pulls Nicky down on the bed. "Make me change my mind." She kisses his neck.

"Seriously?" He looks at her.

"Better work fast." She tells him. "I may change my mind back to no again tomorrow."

He smiles before pushing her head down onto the pillow. "I love you." He tells her before they get busy.

* * *

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	62. Chapter 62

_**CHAPTER 62**_

* * *

Charlotte meets Addison and Violet for dinner. They raise up their glasses.

"To us." Addison clinks her glass with the others.

"To retirement." Violet toasts and then thinks about it. "I'm the only retired one here, aren't I?"

Charlotte and Addison sip their drinks. "Looks that way." Addison puts her drink down.

Violet sighs, looking at Charlotte "You can't stay away from St. Ambrose can you? Always need to be bossy." She smirks and then smiles at Charlotte. "You know I love you Charlotte but I'm just saying..."

"It's temporary." Charlotte swallows. "Until we find someone competent to take over."

"That could take forever before they find someone as efficient as you." Violet teases and then tells her old friend and colleague.  
"Sometimes we need to just let go."

"Thanks for the advice." Charlotte rolls her eyes.

Violet turns her attention to Addison. "You're still seeing patients too."

"Only a few. Just to keep me from losing my mind. I can't just sit around doing nothing." Addison answers.

Violet puts her drink down. "I'm enjoying retirement. You both need to learn to relax and enjoy life." Violet offers.

"I am enjoying life." Addison responds. "But I like to keep busy and working every now and then keeps me on my toes." Addison takes another sip of her drink.

"You need a few more grandchildren." Charlotte tells Addison. "That'll keep you busy, belive me, I know all about that."

"How many do you have now?" Violet counts them on her fingers. "There's Harper and Charley and Michael Nikolas and ..."

Charlotte cuts her off. "We have four and one on the way."

Violet nods. "And from what Cooper tells me Andie keeps you busy."

Charlotte shrugs. "I thought life was supposed to get easier as you got older but I'm busier than ever. I'm still working, I have to watch out for Cooper...-"

Violet interrupsts. "What do you mean watch out for Cooper?"

"His diet." Charlotte nods. "You know how Cooper likes his fries and shakes."

"Yes." Violet smiles and agrees.

"Well with his heart condition we need to limit those plus I have Drew still living at home. I promised Ruby's father I'd watch over Ruby and Drew when he's not around and I have four grandchildren and another on the way."

"How's Michelle doing?" Violet asks. "That was a tragedy what happened last time."

"Addison's her doctor." Charlotte gives Addison the floor.

"Michelle's doing great with this pregnancy. She's twenty two weeks and doing well."

Charlotte sips her drink. "I need to start thinking about planning a baby shower for her. Anyone wanna help?"

"What about her mother?" Violet asks. "Isn't she going to throw her one?"

"Her mother passed away when she was a teen. Michelle has a sister but they're not close."

"So, that's looks like another thing on your plate." Violet tells Charlotte.

"It is." Charlotte nods before sipping her drink.

"I'll help." Addison offers. "I love baby showers. God, I wish Danielle would get pregnant again." Addison sighs.

"Andie's thinking about getting pregnant again." Charlotte winces as she says it.

"Wow." Violet sips her drink.

"Nicky wants another one, so Andie's considering it." Charlotte informs, her voice echoing her disappointment.

Addison asks. "You don't seem thrilled?"

Charlotte explains. "I know what my daughter went through when Hope was born. She was pulling her hair out trying to take care of four kids, one being a very sick baby."

"Well, there's no reason to believe this baby wouldn't be healthy. Andie's still young." Addison tells Charlotte.

"We don't know why Hope had the problems she did so there's no guarantee the next baby won't have something similar. I mean why put yourself through something like that again?" Charlotte shakes her head.

Violet adds. "Andie's an adult. She's gonna do what she's gonna do. You just have to be there to support her."

* * *

Michelle and Chase look around the baby store. "Check out this stroller, Chase, I really like this one." Michelle gives the stroller a little push.

Chase looks at it and nods. "It's cool but I don't think we should buy it yet."

"Why not? Are you still worried the baby won't make it? I'm twenty two weeks." Michelle emphasizes. "I only have two more weeks to go until the baby is viable outside my body."

"It's not that." Chase wraps an arm around her waist. "I'm just thinking that you'll have a baby shower and people will buy you these things as gifts. If we buy everything now, there'll be nothing left for anyone to buy."

"Who's going to throw me a baby shower?" Michelle asks.

"Why don't we register here just in case?" Chase takes Michelle's hand and leads her to the customer service booth. Michelle picks up a little pink teddy bear dressed in a white lace dress on the way to the booth.

Michelle shows him the pink teddy. "Can I buy _this_ for her? It's so cute. Grace-Anne will love it."

Chase takes the bear from her and puts it back down on the shelf. "I don't think Emily Charlotte wants that kind of bear. It's too frilly. She'll like this bear better." Chase picks up a little brown teddy bear in a blue shirt.

"Spoil sport." Michelle teases Chase as they walk to the customer service booth to register. Chase keeps an eye on where the pink bear is. He plans to go back and buy it another day to surprise Michelle at her shower.

* * *

Nicky sits in the rocking chair with Hope, singing her to sleep. Andie peeks in the room. "She's asleep, poppa, come to bed."

Nicky stands up and puts Hope in her crib.

Andie walks back to the master bedroom. Nicky jumps up from behind and lifts her in the air.

"What are you doing?" She giggles.

"What ever you want to do." He carries her to the bedroom.

"You're such a good daddy. If you want another baby, how can I say no to you?"

Nicky smiles. "You can't" He lies her down on the bed.

"I'm so lucky you're mine." Andie leans up to grab him in for a kiss.

* * *

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	63. Chapter 63

_**CHAPTER 63**_

Two weeks later-

* * *

She should've known they would be there, Ruby thinks, as she walks onto the beach with Drew. Ruby and Drew usually don't come until right before sunset but they were bored and she let Drew talk her into going surfing earlier today but there they all are. Kyle and his crew of snooty kids stand there and watch Ruby and Drew walk onto the beach with their surfboards. "Don't worry about them." Drew tells Ruby. "Just look ahead and act like you don't even see them."

Ruby takes Drew's advice. She's lost about forty pounds since she moved to LA but she still has to lose about twenty-five more pounds to be at her goal weight according to the charts. Ruby can't help but glance over at Kyle and his friends as they pass them on the beach. "They're looking at me."

"So what?" Drew reassures her. "They're shallow idiots. We don't need their approval for anything." Drew drops his surf board and bag on an empty spot on the sand. "This spot looks good."

Ruby drops her surf bag but decides to leave her t-shirt on today. "Let's go." She tells Drew as she runs into the surf. Ruby and Drew ride some waves in. "They're still watching me." Ruby tells Drew as she rides a wave to shore with him. "Why do they have to look at me?"

"Maybe they're watching because you're an amazing surfer."

"No, they're probably saying look at the circus elephant on the surf board."

"They're a bunch of vultures. Ignore them! Get lost in the surf! That's what you're best at." Drew advises Ruby while they ride the waves in. After riding a few more waves they hear the girls in Kyle's group screaming for help.

Ruby looks at Drew. "The lifeguards have gone home for the day. Why are they screaming for help?"

Drew looks deep into the surf. "It looks like one of their friends is in trouble out there."

Ruby jumps on her surfboard and paddles out to the distressed surfer. Drew follows her. "Don't follow me Drew. He's too far out. I can only save one shark bait at a time." Ruby paddles as fast as she can. She meets Kyle out there who seems to be struggling to stay afloat. She pulls him up onto her surfboard. "Are you okay, dude?" She asks after he is hanging onto her board.

"It's my little brother. He was trying to surf but he got swept out with the current." He points to a little head bobbing far out." Ruby finds the lads surfboard floating in the water and paddles out to the kid with it. She helps the boy onto the board but he's choking on the water. She paddles him back to shore. Kyle meets her there with her surfboard. The boy is still choking and starts vomiting up water. The paramedics arrive now and rush to help the boy. "Thank You." Kyle hugs Ruby. "You saved my brother." Kyle has tears in his eyes. "I owe you, anything you want let me know."

"You're awesome." A dark haired girl tells Ruby. "Kyle almost drown trying to save his little brother. If you weren't here they both would have drowned."

"No worries. I'm glad to help." Ruby tells them all as she walks back over to Drew.

"You were awesome." Drew high fives Ruby. "Maybe now they'll stop laughing at us."

"I didn't do it for that." Ruby sits in the sand and opens a bottle of water. "I could help, so I did. I don't want to sit by and watch anyone drown."

"How'd you get to be such a good swimmer?" Drew sits on the sand with her.

"I grew up on the beach in Australia. I went swimming and surfing with my mum since I was an ankle biter."

"Do you miss your mom, sometimes?"

"I do but my mum's started a new life with her husband and I'm not part of it." Ruby drinks her water. "But my dad's cool, so I'm okay." They watch the ambulance pull away.

* * *

Chase and Michelle walk in the exam room for Michelle's twenty-four week ultrasound. Addison's checking Michelle every two weeks. Michelle's considered a high risk pregnancy because she suddenly lost a baby at eighteen weeks. "I love your outfit." Addison tells Michelle.

"Thank you." Michelle smiles. "Chase took me shopping for maternity clothes." She fans out the hem of her top. "They have such fashionable maternity clothes these days."

Addison smiles. "You're twenty fours weeks pregnant and just as beautiful as ever."

"Even more beautiful to me." Chase adds.

Michelle scoots up on the exam table.

"You don't have to change." Addison tells her. "Just lift up your top for me. I promise not to get any gel on it."

Michelle lifts her top while Addison spreads the gel around. She presses the wand over Michelle's belly and locates the hearbeat. Addison makes sure to turn up the volune so they hear the "lub-dub-lub-dub," right away because she knows that's what the couple is most anxious about."

Michelle grabs Chase's hand, and breathes a sigh of relief before smiling.

"Have you been feeling the baby move?" Addison asks.

"A lot." Michelle tells Addison. "She's an active one."

"Good." Addison tells her. "And if you don't feel her move that's okay too. She needs to sleep sometimes."

Chase laughs. "Michelle always panics if she doesn't feel her move for a couple hours. She drinks milk and eats a few cookies to get the baby going."

"You're going to have a hyper little girl" Addison teases.

Michelle gets serious now. "So, since I'm twenty-four weeks if the baby were to be born now would she be able to survive on her own?"

Addison nods. "Most babies are viable at twenty-four weeks but we don't want that. Twenty-four weekers have lung problems. They always need a ventilator to help them breath. Many of them are born with brain and intestinal bleeds. Tweny-four weekers can make it but they're very sick babies and some don't survive. You're supposed to be pregnant for forty weeks."

"I know that." Michelle responds. "It's just nice to know that if something does go wrong now and I have to be induced I'll be deliver a live baby."

"How does the baby look?" Chase asks.

"Perfect." Addison moves the wand around. "There's no reason to continue doing ultrasounds every two weeks. This has been a normal pregnancy, Michelle's twenty-four weeks along. I'll see you again in one month."

Michelle sighs while Addison wipes the gel off her belly with a towel.

"This is a good thing, Michelle." Chase squeezes her hand. "That's what we want to hear."

"It is." Addison writes in the chart. "You don't want to need me to monitor you closely because that would mean there was a problem." Addison walks out of the room.

Michelle pulls her shirt down and stands up. Chase gives her a hug. "We did it. We made it to the twenty-four week mark. We are having our first baby!" He squeezes Michelle tight. Michelle can't help but think about how this is not really Chase's first baby.

* * *

Tess gets up out of bed. "Do you have to leave?" Damien asks.

"My grandma is meeting her friend for dinner and BJ is working late."

"We need to find another baby-sitter." Damien pulls Tess back down on the bed for another kiss.

"I could always bring Brayden back here." She kisses him.

"Don't worry about it. I'm gonna go to the gym this morning anyway."

Tess looks at Damien. "You really need to child-proof this place so Brayden can come here then I don't have to depend my grandma or BJ to baby-sit as much." Tess suggests.

"Does BJ know you're seeing me yet?"

"He suspects I'm seeing someone with the late hours I keep but he doesn't know it's you." Tess slips her blouse on.

"When are you going to tell him?"

"There's no need to hurt him."

"You're going to have to tell him when we get married."

Tess looks surprised. She buttons her blouse. "I didn't know we were getting married? When did we have that discussion?"

"I've been thinking about it." Damien smiles. "What do you think?"

"I'm thrilled that you're thinking about it." She sits back on the bed to kiss him again. After the kiss she tells him. "But what about Brayden?"

"What do you mean by_ what about Brayden?_"

"We've never spent a family day out with just the three of us. Whenever we go to the river or go away for the weekend it's just the two of us. My grandma or BJ always watches Brayden."

"The kid's two, Tess." Damien shrugs. "There's not much we could do with a two year old tagging around. We can't take him river-rafting or away for the weekend with us."

"I know." Tess agrees. "But if we get married you'll have to share the house with a two year old. Are you prepared to do that?"

Damien nods. "I could get used to it."

"It doesn't bother you that he's Chase's son? I know how you feel about Chase." Tess asks.

Damien lies his head back on his pillow. "Why would it bother me? Chase doesn't know Brayden is his son and Brayden doesn't know Chase is his father."

Tess pulls her jeans on. "What are you talking about? Chase knows Brayden is his son. I left him the letter and ultrasound photos. He chose to marry his bimbo instead. He even met Brayden when I went to LA to visit my momma. He didn't show up at my momma's funeral and didn't call about wanting to see Brayden again. But don't tell me Chase doesn't know Brayden is his son...-" Tess rambles on.

"Sorry." Damien answers, remembering that the conversation he had with Chase last year. Damien runs his hand through his hair thinking about how Tess isn't aware that Chase thinks Brayden is Damien's son and Damien isn't about to let her know.

* * *

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	64. Chapter 64

_**CHAPTER 64**_

* * *

Drew and Ruby walk with their lunch trays to a table in the high school cafeteria. "Hey Ruby!" Kyle calls out. "Come sit with us."

"Thank you but I'm sitting with Drew." Ruby smiles.

"Can I talk to you in private a minute, Ruby?" Kyle asks.

"Sure." Ruby steps a few feet away to talk to Kyle.

"My parents wanted me to ask you if you would give surfing lessons to my brother and I so we don't have a repeat of what happened the other day. They'll pay you whatever you want to charge."

"Wow. I'll have to think about it."

"Here's my number." He gives Ruby a card. "My parents will pay you real good because you saved my brother's life. And I'm pretty sure some of the other kids want you to teach them how to surf too. We were watching you at the beach the other day. You're amazing on a surf board."

"Thanks. I've been surfing since I was an ankle biter."

Kyle laughs.

Sarah sits down with Drew. "Why is your girlfriend fraternizing with the enemy?"

"She saved his younger brother form drowning at the beach the other day." Drew drinks his milk.

"I heard about it." Sarah watches Kyle talk to Ruby,

"Ruby looks good. She's lost a lot of weight." Sarah comments.

"She took up smoking to help her cut down on eating." Drew takes a bite of his sandwich.

"Is she going to dump you for Kyle now that she's hot?"

"She still wants to lose another twenty pounds, so not yet." Drew bites an apple.

"Kyle will only hurt her the way he hurt me, unless she's willing to put out." Sarah bites into her apple.

"Ruby doesn't like Kyle." Drew watches Ruby and Kyle talk a few feet away.

Sarah sighs. "They look pretty chummy to me."

Ruby tells Kyle. "I'd better get back to Drew now. I call you tomorrow about the surf lessons."

Kyle looks at Drew and Sarah sitting together at the lunch table. He asks Ruby. "Why do you want to hang out with those geeks? You should hang out with us."

"Drew's always been a good mate." Ruby tells him before walking back over to sit next to Drew.

"What did Kyle want to talk to you about?" Drew asks.

"His oldies want me to give him and his brother surf lessons. He said they'll pay me well. Do you think I should do it?" Ruby asks Drew.

"I hate Kyle but it's up to you. It'll probably get you in with him and his crowd."

"I don't want to be in with him but he and his brother are both shark bait. I might enjoy giving them lessons and I wouldn't mind making some money while I'm at it."

* * *

Andie comes over Charlotte and Cooper's house for lunch. "Where are all the kids?" Cooper asks.

"With the nanny." Andie drops her purse on the table.

"Look at you!" Cooper laughs. "Just like grandma Augusta, living the good life while her kids are being raised by a nanny."

"I'm not exactly living the good life, dad, I'm here to eat lunch with you and momma." Andie teases. "Besides, wouldn't you prefer to eat your lunch in peace or would you rather kids running around screaming and wiping chocolate on your furniture."

"Very funny." Cooper gives Andie a kiss on the cheek and leads her into the kitchen. "Your momma tells me you're considering having a fifth child."

"It was Nicky's idea but we can afford it. He hired me a nanny. I can't really think of a reason to tell him no."

Charlotte walks in the kitchen now and grabs a grape out of the fruit dish. "How about because Hope was born with a variety of medical conditions and you don't need to go through that again."

"But we had three healthy children before Hope was born so…-"

Cooper interrupts. "So, you and Nicky decide to have as many children as you want." Cooper's gaze meets Charlotte now. " It's not my or your momma's business how many children you and Nicky have."

"Don't listen to him." Charlotte pops another grape in her mouth. "Your father won't be happy until he has a hundred grandchildren."

"The more the merrier." Cooper smirks.

"Thanks, daddy." Andie sits down at the table. "Now, are we going to plan a baby shower for Michelle or what?"

Charlotte and Cooper sit down with Andie to begin planning the surprise party.

* * *

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	65. Chapter 65

_**CHAPTER 65**_

* * *

Tess and Damien sit across from each other reading their menus at the family style restaurant. Brayden sits next to Tess in his booster seat, scribbling with crayons on the paper children's menu.

"Is there anything healthy on this menu?" Damien scoffs. "Everything is fried."

"You can get a grilled chicken sandwich." Tess suggests.

"Too bland." Damien turns his nose up.

"The salads look good." Tess looks at her menu.

"A big guy like me doesn't go out to dinner to order a salad."

"Sorry." Tess looks at the menu trying to find something that Damien and Brayden would like to eat.

"They have steak."

"You think a chain like this serves quality steak? It's probably cheap chewy crap." Damien scoffs.

Tess sighs, still looking at the menu.

The waitress comes over and Tess orders first. "My son will have the chicken tenders from the children's menu with a milk and I'll have a cobb salad with a diet coke."

"And you sir?" The waitress looks at Damien.

"Just give me a turkey club, light on the mayo and a Heineken."

They hand the menus in to the waitress.

"Looks like you found something to eat." Tess smiles.

Damien looks around the family style restaurant. "They can't go wrong with a turkey club, I hope."

"Me want down. Me want down." Brayden tells his momma.

"You have to stay in your seat until we eat."

"Me want down!" Brayden says louder.

Damien offers. "Why don't you let him out of his seat. People are looking over here."

"If I let him out, he'll run all over the restaurant and I'll have to chase after him."

"Me want down!" Brayden demands.

"Can't you keep him quiet?" Damien says in a low voice. "People are looking at us."

"Let 'em look." Tess shrugs. "This is a family restaurant. It's not a place you come to if you want to eat in quiet."

"By the look of the place I think most people come here because of the cheap food and cheap prices."

"Me want down." Brayden starts to cry now.

Tess pulls out an open package of M&M's and puts it on the table in front of Brayden. Brayden picks up the candies one at a time to eat them.

Damien screws up his face. "You're giving him candy before dinner?"

"I'm trying to keep him quiet. You said people were staring. He's quiet now, isn't he?"

"But candy before dinner?" Damien scowls.

"I don't normally do it but I have to do what I know will work and this works with him. He's like his father. He has a sweet tooth."

Damien shakes his head. "Why do you always have to bring up Chase?"

Tess swallows. "Like it or not, Chase is his father. His name is gonna come up."

The waitress brings the drinks to the table. Damien picks up his Heineken for a sip. "Chase is _not_ his father. Chase doesn't support him financially, emotionally, or any other way. He may have provided the sperm that made Brayden but you can't call him a father. I'm more a father to this kid than Chase has ever been."

Tess can't argue with that. Brayden doesn't even know Chase. He knows Damien.

The waitress brings the food over. They eat quietly, thinking if they are going to work out as a family.

* * *

Andie meets Nicky at a romantic Italian restaurant. He walks over to the table where she's already seated. "Sorry, I'm late." He sits down.

"It's okay." Andie smiles. "I already ordered our drinks and an appetizer."

Nicky looks around. "I was surprised when you asked to meet here. You always pick a sushi restaurant whenever we go out without the kids."

The waitress brings the fried calamari and the drinks. She puts a beer in front of Nicky and an iced tea in front of Andie before leaving.

"How come you didn't order us a bottle of wine?" Nicky asks before he sips his beer. "Wouldn't wine go better with Italian food?"

Andie picks up a piece of fried calamari. "Can't have sushi because of the raw fish, can't have wine cuz of the alcohol."

Nicky's jaw drops. "You're pregnant?"

"Yep." Andie smiles big.

"I must be super fertile." Nicky boasts.

Andie laughs.

"When did you find out?"

"I did a test after you left for work this morning but I had a feeling, I'm five days late and feel like I did the other times."

"This is great. I can't wait to tell everyone."

"No, no, no." Andie warns. "We can't tell anyone."

"Why can't we tell anyone?" Nicky asks. "I'm happy. Aren't you?"

"Yes, I'm happy." Andie bites into her calamari. "But I don't want to say anything yet because of Chase and Michelle."

"Why?" Nicky asks. "This is your fifth pregnancy and you've never miscarried. You can't compare yourself to Michelle."

"Not because of that." Andie sips her iced tea. "This is their first baby and our fifth, let them have the moment. Her shower is next week."

"So, we'll tell everyone after her shower?"

"I think we should wait until after their baby is born. She's due in ten weeks. We can wait that long."

"You... Are... A... Good...Woman." Nicky emphasizes each word.

"Chase has always been a good brother to me. Momma's always fussed over me and our kids, let her fuss over Chase and his firstborn for now."

"Got it, Belle." Nicky eats his calamari.

* * *

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	66. Chapter 66

_**CHAPTER 66**_

* * *

Michelle isn't exactly caught off guard by the sight of a room full of people standing inside the door of Giorgio's after Chase dragged her there to eat. She told him she ate already and wasn't hungry but he was insistent they go out to eat tonight at Giorgio's. She's twenty eight weeks pregnant so it's not like she wasn't expecting her shower soon — but she is a little surprised by the large turn out for her.

She's wearing baby pink velour maternity sweats and zip-up jacket, not exactly her most flattering attire. She's not wearing any make-up, either. She looks at the crowd who are all staring at her. "Thank you," is all she can bring herself to say. She feels her face blush with all the eyes in the room on her.

She follows Chase into the party room, hot on his heels and muttering, "Why didn't you warn me? I would have worn that new dress you bought me or my favorite maternity shirt with leggings. I look like a slob."

Chase shakes his head, rolling his eyes while she can't see him. "I didn't want you to suspect. If I told you to change into something nice you would have figured it out. You can always change in the bathroom."

"Into what?"

"My momma brought your favorite dress along," he tells her, setting himself down in a chair near Lucas. "I warned my momma you wouldn't be happy unless you looked your best."

"In that case," she tells him, her voice losing its' edge. "Thank you," she kisses his cheek

Chase smirks. "I knew that would make your night."

Charlotte walks over. "Are you surprised?"

"Can't you tell by what I'm wearing?" Michelle raises her eyebrows.

"I got ya' covered." Charlotte ushers Michelle to the bathroom while the crowd mingles. "How are you feelin'?" Charlotte asks, handing Michelle her dress.

"Tired." Michelle slips out of her velour sweat suit.

"I can tell."

"That's because of the lack of make-up." Michelle answers with a sigh.

"You're in your third trimester. You're allowed to look tired." Charlotte zips up the back of Michelle's dress

"I hope you don't take this wrong." Michelle cringes before she says it. "But you look exhausted yourself."

"I work ten hour days," she reminds Michelle. "And then I have to come home and make sure Cooper's eating right and getting his exercise. Then there's Drew and Ruby to look after and...Andie and her kids."

"Didn't Nicky hire a nanny for Andie so she doesn't need to depend on you so much?"

Charlotte gives a heavy, irritated sigh, then speaks. "Nicky hired a nanny so Andie would agree to have a fifth child with him."

Michelle applies her mascara, looking in the mirror. "And here I am hoping to make it to the finish line with baby number one."

"You're twenty-eight weeks. You're almost at home plate."

Michelle nods, and takes a deep breath, "I'm counting down the weeks. Each week that goes by I cross off the calendar and think about what developmental stages we passed over.

"It's time." Charlotte murmurs. "Everyone's waiting for the guest of honor." Michelle and Charlotte walk into the party room.

"You look beautiful." Chase greets Michelle with a hug.

Andie sits at a table with Nicky across from Noah and Marley.

"Momma looks haggard." Noah bites into a piece of bread.

"No, she doesn't." Andie scoffs. He might be right, Andie's not sure, but either way she warns him, "It's not wise to speak ill of momma, Noah. You keep it up like that, she's liable to smack your behind."

Noah snorts a little laugh. "Now that I believe."

They all laugh, Noah takes another bite of his bread, "I'm worried about her. I haven't seen her in a few months but it's noticeable. She looks real tired. Has she been watching your kids a lot?"

Andie rolls her eyes and reaches for the knife to cut a new piece of bread. "Nicky hired me a nanny so, _no_, momma hasn't been watching my kids but she's working long hours again at St. Ambrose and she's worried about daddy after his heart attack."

"Oh." Noah nods.

"She's getting older. Someone should tell her to cut back on her hours at St. Ambrose." Marley suggests.

Andie shakes her head, "You have met my momma before, haven't you? Momma does what momma wants."

Michelle's best friend stands up to congratulate Chase and Michelle. She asks everyone to pick up their champagne glasses. The waitress tries to pour some champagne into Andie's empty glass.

"No thank you," she says, placing her hand over the glass.

"C'mon, Andie, you're not going to toast Chase and Michelle's first baby?" Noah complains.

Andie looks at Nicky for an excuse but he just smirks. "I'm the designated driver," is the best she can come up with.

"I'm not asking you to get drunk; just toast Chase and Michelle for luck. They need all the well wishes they can get."

She wishes she could but she can't, and she can't well tell him why.

"I'll pass. I'm not feeling well today." Andie looks away while she talks.

"What're you talking about? You scoffed down all the bread and butter in the bowl. Marley didn't even get a piece." Noah teases.

"What's with you today?" Andie scowls at Noah. "You're watching what I eat and now what I drink. Get off my case."

Noah raises his eyebrows. "And you're cranky too."

Nicky chuckles.

"What're you, pregnant again or something?" Marley teases.

Andie feels her face flush now. She hates lying but she didn't plan on announcing it until after Chase and Michelle gave birth.

"No. I. am. Not. Pregnant.," she enunciates every word. She hopes it's convincing.

Nicky's looking at her funny. "Belle?"

"We agreed not to announce it until Chase and Michelle had their baby." She defends.

"We didn't announce it." Nicky insists. "But now you're lying."

"Oh my God, you really are pregnant." Noah drops his roll on his plate. "Number five?"

"Do not breathe a word of this to anyone family." Andie warns.

"Why?" Marley doesn't understand the secrecy. It's Andie's fifth pregnancy and she's never miscarried.

"Because I don't want to steal Chase and Michelle's thunder. This is their first baby. Let them have all the attention."

Noah laughs. "Because everyone's going to drop everything and forget about them to wait at your feet if they know you're pregnant again?"

"No. It's like announcing your engagement at your best friend's wedding shower. You just don't steal the show. At least _I_ don't"

"When are you due?" Marley asks. "How far along will you be at our wedding?"

"I'll be in my third trimester at your wedding."

"Are you still going to be a bridesmaid?"

"If you still want me." Andie shrugs. "I'm warning you though, I'll be huge by then."

Nicky watches Andie bite into the last piece of bread with butter. He grimaces "How huge are you planning to get?"

"What are you worried about?" Andie scoffs. "You'll probably be touring Europe with the band by then. I plan on eating what I want. It's our fifth kid. I'm spoiling myself this time."

Cooper sits down at the table. "What are we talking about?"

They all look at each other.

Charlotte announces it's time for Michelle to open her gifts. Andie sighs in relief. She's saved from having to make up a lie.

"Momma looks tired, dad." Noah starts with Cooper now. "She needs to quit St. Ambrose."

Cooper raises his eyebrows up and down. "Try telling your momma that."

Everyone turns their attention to the center of the room where Michelle and Chase are seated with grins on their faces. Charlotte and Michelle's best friend pass baby gifts to them.

Cooper has a big smile on his face now too. "It's nice to finally see them have their day. They've been wanting this since before they got married."

Andie scrunches her face. "Isn't that why they got married? Because they both wanted to start a family and Tess wanted to wait."

Nicky adds. "But then Tess ended up having a baby before them. Her kid must be almost three by now?"

"Two and a half." Andie nods. "I know because Chase thought it might be his son until they told him it wasn't."

"So, Tess got pregnant right after she moved to Georgia?" Marley inquires.

"Appears that way." Andie sips her water.

"That's just weird." Noah shakes his head. "It doesn't make sense."

"It was probably an accident." Marley suggests.

"Or." Nicky adds. "They could be lying and it could really be Chase's kid."

Cooper nods. "I noticed a resemblance."

Andie defends Tess. "There is no way Tess would lie to Chase if it was his son. I know Tess. She's not a liar."

Everyone's attention is diverted to Chase and Michelle when she opens a gift from Chase. "The little bear you made me put back at the store." Michelle hugs the pink teddy bear in the white lace dress. "You went back and got it."

Chase gives Michelle a big smile.

"Would you look at them." Cooper has tears in his eyes. "This is the happiest day in their life."

"Wait until the birth." Nicky reminds. "That will be the happiest day of their lives."

"I'll never forget the birth of my firstborn" Cooper smiles thinking back. "It was the best day of my life."

"That would be me." Andie squeals in delight. Noah rolls his eyes.

Cooper notices. "You're all special to us." Cooper reminds Noah, "whether you're number one or number five." Cooper looks at Andie now. Her momma must have told him she was thinking about a fifth. At least she knows her daddy will be supportive when she tells him the news but today is about Chase and Michelle and their firstborn.

* * *

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	67. Chapter 67

_**CHAPTER 67**_

* * *

Charlotte walks in the door after working a ten hour shift at St. Ambrose. Cooper gets up from his chair to greet her with a little hello kiss. "You look like crap." He tells her.

"Nice." She answers sarcastically, dropping her purse on the table by the front door.

"I'm serious Charlotte. Everyone was saying you looked exhausted at Michelle's shower last week."

"Define everyone."

"Andie, Noah, Chase, Violet."

Charlotte stalks into the kitchen while Cooper follows on her tail. "Andie should talk. " Charlotte complains. "She's got it easy since Nicky hired the nanny. She's going to the spa for massages and pedicures every week."

"You can do that too." Cooper pours a glass of wine for both of them. "You don't need to work. We certainly don't need the money."

Charlotte sits at the table where Cooper has her favorite oven fried chicken waiting. "I'm not doing it for the money, Coop. I've been Chief of Staff for over thirty years. When I retired; St. Ambrose was slowly starting to sink. I built up the reputation of that hospital for thirty years, hell if I'm going to sit around and watch it sink."

Cooper passes Charlotte the platter of chicken. "Why is it so hard to find a competent doctor to replace you? The job comes with a hefty paycheck and the prestige of being Chief of Staff."

Charlotte takes the chicken from him. "Not anyone can be Chief of Staff, Cooper. Where's Drew?"

"He's out with Ruby tonight, surfing. I know not anyone can be chief of staff but there must be some capable doctors around LA." Cooper bites into his chicken.

Charlotte swallows down her wine. "Not only do they need to be competent in medicine and have a sound knowledge base. They have to have a hard shell. They can't be afraid of disciplining the staff which include some arrogant doctors. They have to respect and follow the rules, they have to be a mediator between patient's families and the staff and they also have to have compassion for sick patients and their families. It's not an easy job, Coop."

"That's exactly why you shouldn't be doing it. You don't need the stress at your age. You're worried about me and my heart condition. I'm exercising and eating well so I'll be around for you and the kids now can you at least do the same for me and take care of yourself. I don't want to sit next to an empty rocking chair when I'm eighty."

"It would be more stressful for me to watch St. Ambrose fall apart if I left."

"It's not going to fall apart, Chief. There has to be a competent doctor that wants to take on the challenge."

"I'd suggest Noah." Charlotte suggests. "But he still needs to graduate medical school, complete his residency and get years of experience under his belt before he can take the job."

"We can't wait ten years, Char" Cooper bites his chicken.

Charlotte gives a silent sigh, thinking about what to do.

* * *

Chase comes home from work. "Wow! The place looks so…." Chase tries to find the right word. "Clean, not that it wasn't clean before but it's spotless clean."

"They call it nesting." Michelle explains. "I'm getting our nest ready for the baby to come home."

Chase follows Michelle into the kitchen for dinner. "But we finished the nursery over a month ago."

"I was trying to organize all the shower gifts and doing some finishing touches." Michelle hands him a photo album.

"Where did you find this?" Chase sits at the table to eat.

"In the bottom drawer of your nightstand."

"What were you doing in my nightstand?" He asks her, scooping some mac and cheese onto his plate.

"We agreed the baby would stay in the bassinet in our room for the first month. I cleared out your sock drawer to make room for some of the baby's clothes in case we need to change her during the night…I moved your socks into the bottom drawer of your nightstand and found your photo album…-It's all you and Tess."

He pauses holding a forkful of mac and cheese in front of his mouth. "Why didn't you switch _your_ sock drawer. Why did you pick mine to use for the baby clothes?"

"This isn't about socks, Chase. This is about why you're holding onto that photo album of you and Tess."

"You still go out to lunch with your ex and I'm not allowed to keep a photo album of mine?" He points out.

"I haven't met with Benn since you told me you were uncomfortable with it and _I'm _telling _you_ I'm uncomfortable with you holding on to that photo album."

"What do you want me to do with it?" Chase scowls. "Throw it away?"

"I don't care what you do with it but I don't want it in our house. I don't want it in our bedroom next to the bed we have sex in." Michelle scowls now.

Chase sighs. "Fine, I'll get rid of it," he tells her. He's not throwing it away. It's all he has left of his life with Tess. He'll keep it in the bottom drawer of his desk at the office.

* * *

In Georgia. Tess anxiously walks up to the front door at Damien's house. This is the first time she's ever left Damien and Brayden alone together. Granted it was only for twenty minutes while she ran up to the grocery store to pick up some milk but still she's nervous to find out if it went okay. She walks in the door and into the kitchen where she finds Damien taking the baked potatoes out of the oven. "Where's Brayden?" She asks casually.

"He's in the backyard."

"You left him outside by himself?"

"Chillax." Damien tells her. "I'm watching him out the window and I was out there before flipping the steaks on the grill. He's fine."

Tess hurries out the kitchen door to pick up Brayden. "Wheeew." She fans her hand in front of her face. "You are a stinky little man."

Damien joins her outside to take the steaks off the grill. "That's another reason I didn't want him in the house. He stinks."

"He has a dirty diaper. Why didn't you change him?"

Damien carries the steaks inside on a plate. "I've never changed a diaper in my life. I wasn't going to start with a smelly one."

"I need to give him a bath." Tess walks in the house, holding Brayden.

"Can't it wait? Dinner's ready."

"I don't want him to end up with a diaper rash." Tess walks in the bathroom and fills up the tub.

"Make it quick." Damien calls out. "Steaks are not good cold."

Tess fills the tub with bubbles and dunks Brayden in.

"Yay! Bubbas." Brayden shrieks, playing with the bubbles.

"Hurry up in there. Tess." Damien calls out. "Don't blame me if your dinner is cold."

Tess sighs. "C'mon, Bray-Bud. I just wanted to rinse off your behind anyway. You can take a bubble bath later."

"More bubbas!" Brayden cries as Tess picks him up out of the tub. "More bubbas."

"You'll get more bubbles tonight." Tess dries him off with a towel and redresses him. She carries him into the kitchen.

"He's two and a half." Damien comments. "Shouldn't he be toilet trained by now?"

Tess places Brayden down in his booster seat. "He's not ready yet."

Damien passes Tess a plate with steak, baked potato and broccoli. Tess cuts up Brayden's steak for him.

"Why are you cutting it up into tiny mouse bites?" Damien asks. "Brayden has teeth. He can chew."

"I know he has teeth but he's two, if I don't cut it up in small pieces he's liable to choke."

"He needs to learn to use those teeth." Damien sinks his teeth into his own steak. "You shouldn't feed him those jarred baby bananas and applesauce anymore. He should be biting into actual bananas and apples."

"I don't want to rush him." Tess defends. "That's why kids choke. I'm not going to send him to kindergarten eating jarred baby-food. He's only two."

Damien explains, "The jarred food is for babies without teeth. He's not a baby. As a matter of fact, he's closer to three years old than two years old." Damien points out.

"Why are you picking on my parenting?" Tess places the plate of cut up steak in front of Brayden.

"Because you're babying him, Tess. He's two and a half years old. Why are you treating him like a baby?"

Tess swallows down a piece of her own steak. "Because he's probably the only baby I'll ever have. I want to enjoy it while it lasts. They grow up so damned fast as it is."

"What makes you think he's the only baby you'll ever have?" Damien asks before sipping on his beer.

"Correct me if I'm wrong but you don't seem crazy about kids."

"I want kids." Damien smirks at her.

"Really?" Tess is truly surprised since Damien has never showed much interest in Brayden. She and Damien have the best time when it's just them alone.

"It'll be different when we have kids of our own."

"Wrong answer, Damien." Tess puts her fork down. "Brayden doesn't know Chase exists. You would be his father if we got married. He would be _our_ son."

"He'd be my step-son." Damien takes another sip of beer.

"But why do you have to think of him like that? Why can't you think of him as your own since his father's not in his life?" Tess worries now.

"He looks just like Chase. Every time I look at the kid I see Chase in him." Damien responds.

"You're going to have to get past that, Damien, if it's going to work out with us. God forbid something happened to me you would be the one to raise Brayden if we were married. My grandmother is too old to raise him. She'll probably be dead by the time Brayden is ten years old. My father and brother live in LA, Brayden hardly knows them so you would be it. I need to know that you would raise him as your own son."

Damien swallows down his steak before talking. "Nothing's going to happen to you, Tess. You're young and healthy."

"You never know, Damien. I could step off the curb and get run over. You read about young people dying in accidents. As a mother I have to have a plan for Brayden in case anything were to happen to me. Are you in or not?"

"Yes." Damien nods. "I can be in this."

Tess hakes her head and sighs. "I'm not getting engaged to you until you show me you can be a father, a _good _father to Brayden."

Damien looks over at Brayden eating his steak. "Yummy-yummy." Brayden tells Damien.

"Give me a high five kid." Damien picks up Brayden's hand. "Anyone who loves my cooking is a friend of mine."

Brayden laughs. "More! Do it more."

Damien gives the toddler another high five. "Okay enough, kiddo, eat your yummy steak." Damien looks at Tess. "How's that?"

"It's a start." Tess nods.


	68. Chapter 68

**Chapter**_** 68**_

* * *

Charlotte's sitting behind her desk when Cooper arrives, and she clearly wasn't expecting this, because he's carrying a tray from the hospital cafeteria with two greasy looking cheeseburgers and two large cartons of fries. She looks up at him. He nods and smiles before he shuts the door behind him. "Wasn't expectin' this," she tells him.

"Thought you might be hungry for lunch." He places the tray on her desk in front of her, untucks his shirt before he loosens his belt and takes a seat in the chair near her desk.

"You shouldn't be eatin' that." She gestures to the cheeseburger he's about to grab. "You wanna have another heart attack?"

"Oh, so you could work yourself to death but I have to watch my health, that's called a double standard, Charlotte." He bites into his cheeseburger.

She orders, "get your backside out of that chair and get over here to look at my computer screen."

He stands up and walks behind her desk, looking over her shoulder. "Alexis Rhodes?" He asks. "Why are you looking up Alexis Rhodes?"

"I'm keeping my end of our bargain and looking for a competent doctor to take over as chief of staff. Now you keep up your end and throw that damn cheeseburger away."

Cooper screws up his nose. "Alexis Rhodes as chief of staff?"

"Why not?" She asks him. "Alexis started out as a psychiatrist so she has people skills. She got bored of that and did a fellowship in med-surg and now she's teaching residents at John Hopkins medical center so she's got the knowledge. She's thirty-seven, I was younger than that when I started here as chief of staff."

"What made you think of Alexis?"

"I was talking to Noah on the phone last night. He and Marley ate lunch with Alexis the other day. They see her around John Hopkins. Noah told me she has a reputation of being a hard ass among the residents but she's a good doctor and they all respect her. Alexis is a tough cookie. I think she could handle the job and do it well. She's not married, no kids, so she has nothing tying her to Maryland and her mother still lives in LA."

"You think she would be interested in the position?"

"I just sent her an email before you walked in the door with your heart attack on a tray."

Cooper picks up his cheeseburger and tosses it in the garbage pail. He reaches to pick up Charlotte's too but she grabs it away from him. "Get your hands off my lunch. I don't have a heart condition." She bites into her burger.

Cooper shakes his head. "You can't eat that in front of me. That's mean."

"Thanks for lunch. I've gotta get back to work. I've got a ton of paperwork and I'm sure you've got something better to do than watch me eat my cheeseburger."

"I think I'll go pay Marissa a visit. Maybe I can convince her to talk Alexis into taking the job."

"Bye." She nods and waves before she takes another bite of her cheeseburger. Once he leaves she tosses the rest in the garbage pail and smiles.

* * *

Michelle is surprised by it herself, she's going on thirty two weeks pregnant and feeling good, really good, so she sends Chase a naughtily suggestive text. He must have already been on his way home from work because he's walking in the door ten minutes later.

"That was fast." She grins.

"I was on my way home for lunch. I got your test and to answer your question-I'm starving." He nips at her ear and then her neck.

They spend the rest of his lunch hour doing all sorts of naughty things to each other. It's intense, maybe because of her hormones, maybe because she's finally relaxed about carrying this pregnancy to term, she's almost thirty two weeks after all, maybe it's both. It's been a long time, she hasn't let him touch her for most of the pregnancy for fear an orgasm might cause her to miscarry. It's a myth and she's a nurse so she knows it's perfectly normal to have sex with an uncomplicated pregnancy but she wasn't taking any chances this time, not up until now that is. Her system is overloaded with a sensation she hasn't felt in over six months. She can tell he's feeling it too. He hasn't had sex in six months either.

"You wore me out," he tells her, smiling. "How am I supposed to return to work after that lunch?"

She takes a minute to look at him. "It's been a long time," she tells him.

"Why the sudden change?" He asks. "I thought you wanted to avoid sex until the baby's born?"

"I was feeling good all day, feeling really good. I needed you to put out my fire." She smirks before snuggling up next to him.

"Well, I hope your fire is burning again tonight when I get home from work so I can put it out for you" He lifts his legs over the side of the bed. "Unfortunately, I have to get back to work." He walks into the bathroom to clean up.

"I'm gonna take a nap so I'm wide awake for tonight." She calls out to him in the bathroom. She falls asleep with a smile on her face.

He cleans up and gets himself dressed in the bathroom. Before he leaves to go back to work, he sits next to her on the bed, and kisses her lips like she's a sleeping princess. He kisses her thirty-two week pregnant belly next, "I love you." He tells them both before heading out the door. As he drives back to work it crosses his mind that he should get rid of the photo album of himself and Tess that he's keeping in the bottom drawer of his desk. He looks in the rear view mirror at himself and shakes his head. "Not yet, I'm not ready yet," he says to his reflection. He's married to another woman and she's having his baby in eight weeks, he should be ready. Is he ever going to be able to let go of Tess? He wonders and lets out a sigh.


	69. Chapter 69

_**Chapter 69**_

* * *

A week later, Chase and Michelle walk hand in hand on the beach waiting for the sun to set. "Life is weird." Chase kicks the sand with his feet as he walks.

"What do you mean?" Michelle takes a sip of her bottled water.

"It blows my mind that in less than two months it's not going to be just the two of us anymore. We won't be able to take romantic walks on the beach like this after two more months."

Michelle nods, walking along with him. "Just think in one year Grace-Anne may be walking. She may be toddling along with us."

"My momma said I was an early walker so maybe…-" Chase raises his eyebrows before he says this one "Emily Charlotte will be toddling along with us and you'll be pregnant with baby number two."

Michelle laughs. "Do you plan on keeping me pregnant forever?"

"Only for the next five years." Chase smiles.

"I love being pregnant." Michelle announces. "Some women complain about gaining weight or being uncomfortable but I love it."

Chase nods. "That's because you can appreciate it. You lost two pregnancies, you really wanted this."

"Plus everyone treats me different now that I'm pregnant. Strangers smile at me for no reason. Last week this old man in the store let me cut him in line because I'm pregnant. People are nicer to pregnant woman."

"Well then plan on being pregnant for the next five years. I want a boatload of kids."

Michelle looks ahead. "Isn't that Drew and Ruby over there surfing in the waves?"

Chase squints his eyes to look. "Hey Squirt!" He calls out. "Yeah, that's them." Chase chuckles.

"He's going to kill you for calling him Squirt." Michelle snickers.

Chase looks around. "The beach is pretty empty tonight. I don't think I damaged his reputation."

"You did in front of Ruby and that's his girlfriend." Michelle squeezes Chase's hand as they walk towards Drew and Ruby.

* * *

Cooper and Charlotte are settled down for the night, Charlotte's stretched out on the couch letting Cooper give her a much-needed foot rub while they watch TV. "Did Alexis ever get back to you?" He asks.

"Hmm…Hmm." She moans at the feeling of his hands rubbing her sore feet. "She's coming to LA next week for the hospital board to interview her."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

Charlotte talks with her eyes closed, enjoying the foot rub. "You didn't ask." Charlotte turns her attention to the tv screen. "Turn this off, put something worth while on."

"This is worth while."

"I can't believe you watch this all day, once I retire we're not sitting around the house watching television. I'd rather work to the bone and come home...-"

Cooper doesn't let her finish. "With sore feet?"

She gives him an eye roll. "Change the channel, Cooper."

Cooper gives in and sits next to her now. "I'll switch it but no more foot rubs for you." He smirks at her.

"Fine by me." Charlotte grabs the remote from him, flipping through the channels.

"We should take that Hawaiian vacation we were talking about once you retire." Cooper puts his feet up on the coffee table. Charlotte stretches out her legs so they're resting on his.

"We have to wait until Michelle has the baby. I wanna be here for that."

"She's due in what? Seven more weeks?" Cooper asks, looking at the channels flash by in front of him. "Just pick something, Chief, anything."

"Yup about seven weeks." Charlotte stops at medical show about autopsies.

"You'd rather watch this than the food channel?" Cooper grimaces.

Charlotte nods. "And I don't want to hop on a plane the day after the baby is born either. We should wait until she's a month old."

Cooper pouts. "By then Andie will be pregnant again and you won't want to leave her."

"Andie better not be pregnant again." Charlotte watches the tv screen.

"That's not up to you, momma, she's married and Nicky's supporting her and the kids." Cooper warns.

"They have two boys and two girls. Why can't they be happy with that? And I'm not your momma." Charlotte responds.

"I don't understand why you have such a problem with Nicky and Andie having another kid. Nicky does well in the band. He can afford it."

"He hired her a nanny, Coop. I grew up with nannies and hated it. If you wanna have kids you should be around to raise 'em. Andie's off at the spa or the gym just about every day while the nanny is with her kids."

"It's not our business, Chief."

Charlotte makes a pretty little pout and watches tv.

* * *

Chase is honestly impressed with Ruby and Drew's surfing ability. "When did you get so good?" He calls out to his younger brother.

Drew rides a wave to shore, hops off the surfboard and wades over to Chase. "Since Ruby started giving me lessons."

"Impressive." Chase nods.

"Let's see you give it a try." Ruby wades over to them.

Chase shakes his head. "I wish I could but I'm not wearing a bathing suit."

Noah shrugs. "So, strip down to your boxers. The only human within twenty feet of us is your wife." Noah waves to Michelle who's now sitting on the beach.

"Here, take my surf board." Ruby passes it to him. "I wanna chew the fat with Michelle anyway." Rubys runs up onto the sand towards Michelle while Chase strips down to his boxers to surf with Drew.

Michelle watches. "What the hell is Chase doing?"

"Oh, he's going to surf in his skivvies." Ruby plops down next to Michelle in the sand.

Michelle shakes her head. "He's really lost it. I heard this happens to men when their wives are close to birth."

"How's ya goin'?" Ruby looks at Michelle's belly.

"I'm doing great. I love being pregnant."

"It suits you." Michelle agrees.

"You look great." Michelle looks over Ruby. "The pounds are just melting off of you."

"Thanks." Ruby pulls up her bathing suit top. ""Cept my clothes don't fit me anymore. I need to go on another shopping spree."

"I'll go with you." Michelle sips her water. "There's nothing I love more than clothes shopping. Oh, I have a beautiful bathing suit you can have." Michelle rubs her belly. "I certainly can't wear it anymore."

"I'm keen on that." Ruby watches Drew and Chase in the surf.

"Chase is a bit rusty." Michelle tells Ruby. "I'm afraid that's my fault. I've been keeping him busy so he hasn't been able to get out and surf."

"Drew and I come here as much as we can."

"How are things going with you and Drew?"

"Really good. Can I confide in you about something?"

"Shoot." Michelle smiles.

"I've been holding Drew off to…well you know." She looks at Michelle. Michelle nods knowingly. "I wanted to lose weight first, not because of Drew but because I wanted to feel good about myself. I only have twelve more pounds to go until I'm at my goal weight."

"That's great for you!" Michelle wraps her arm around Michelle's shoulder to congratulate her.

Ruby seems a little uncomfortable "See, the thing is Drew and I are not just boyfriend-girlfriend, we're each other's best mates."

"Okay." Michelle senses that Ruby is feeling uncomfortable. She doesn't push. She waits for Ruby to get the words out.

"I'm afraid if Drew and I have the naughty and it doesn't work out then I'll lose my only real mate." Ruby plays with the sand. "I don't know what to do."

"Follow your gut. If your gut is telling you not to sleep with Drew then don't. When the time is right you'll know."

"But the other kids at school are doing it. I've made Drew wait all this time for me to lose the weight. How can I tell him no?"

"Never let a boy pressure you, Ruby. It'll be much better when you're ready. If you're not ready, it'll end badly for both you and Drew."

"For real?"

"Yeah." Michelle nods. "I know from experience. Wait until you're ready and it'll be better."

Ruby sighs. Michelle is probably right but that's not the answer she was looking for.

* * *

_**REVIEW!**_


	70. Chapter 70

**CHAPTER 70. **

* * *

It's 8pm and at the end of the day Michelle finds herself exhausted and settling into bed.

She sighs and sets down her book. Her hand goes to her belly. She's feeling tight and uncomfortable tonight so she closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. Her eyes pop open at the sound of the door knob turning.

It's Chase, he smiles and sets his keys down on the table. She watches him undress. He's probably expecting another night of amazing third trimester hormonal sex. Unfortunately for him, she doesn't feel up to it tonight. He slides into bed next to her and greets her with a warm wet kiss to the neck.

All's silent for a few minutes, and then she tells him. "I'm really tired tonight, Chase. You've worn me out this past week."

"Okay." He agrees. "I knew it had to come to an end sooner or later."

"Maybe tomorrow." She gives him a soft smile. "After a good night's sleep."

Chase stares at her for a minute. "You're beautiful. Our daughter will be lucky if she looks anything like you." He stares at her beauty. She could have been a super model. He remembers her looks were what first attracted him to her when they met at the office. He remembers talking to her at a party, he remembers the first time he had sex with her in his office and Tess walked in. He stops staring at her and lies his head on his pillow now. _Tess_- he thinks to himself. _Tess_- he wonders what she's doing now.

Michelle turns over on her side to give him a kiss. "Goodnight." She tells him. He kisses her back and tries to put his thoughts of Tess out of his mind. He kisses her belly. "Goodnight Emily Charlotte."

"You mean Grace-Anne." Michelle smirks and rolls back over onto her back. Chase is about to say something. And then, she feels it. Her eyes pop open wide, one hand moving to settle on her belly. Chase notices the movement and looks at her. She's wincing. "What's wrong?"

"I just got a sharp pain inside my belly." She takes a deep breath and relaxes. "It went away. Thank God it's gone now."

"Did the baby kick you hard?"

"It didn't feel like a kick. This was a sharp shooting pain."

"Emily's getting bigger and stronger." Chase rubs his hand over her pregnant belly. "I think she may have put pressure on a nerve and then moved off it."

"Well, I hope she doesn't move back on it because it hurt like hell."

"Do you want me to call Addison?" He asks.

"If it happens again but the pain's gone now and I can feel her moving so I know she's okay." Michelle closes her eyes again.

Chase isn't quite as tired so he picks up the remote to watch some tv. After an hour he falls asleep. No more that two hours later, Michelle jumps up in the bed and lets out a high pitched moan.

"What is it?" Chase opens his eyes and lifts up his head.

"There it is again." Her voice is pained. "I think I'm in labor."

"What?" Chase sits straight up, reaches for her belly to feel if her muscles are contracting.

"It's gone now." She tells him. "But it must be contractions I'm feeling. They come and go and hurt like hell."

"Okay…Okay." Chase tries to stay calm. "You're thirty three weeks and three days pregnant so the baby will be a little early but she should be okay. Don't panic." He tells her but she knows he's trying to convince himself. "We can do this."

Michelle swallows, trying to remain calm herself. "You need to call Addison. Maybe she can give me something to stop the contractions. I'll go in the bathroom to get dressed."

"Okay." Chase reaches for his phone while Michelle gets out of bed. That's when he notices it. There's a bright red stain just bigger than a quarter on the sheet. "Michelle, you're bleeding!"

"Oh my God!" Michelle looks at the stain. "Why? What's happening?"

"Get dressed quick. I'll call Addison and take you to the hospital."

Addison answers the phone. Chase doesn't waste anytime. "Michelle's having sharp pains and bleeding."

"When did this start?"

"The pain started a few hours ago. It comes and goes."

"Sounds like labor." Addison responds.

"But what about the bleeding? It's bright red."

"I'll meet you at St. Ambrose in the L&D unit."

"We're on our way." Chase pulls his jeans and shirt on as fast as he can.

Michelle comes out of the bathroom. She's nervous and shaking.

Chase stops to hug her. "It's alright. You're in your thirty third week. You're only about six weeks early. The baby will be fine-just relax."

"My underwear were all bloody. Why am I bleeding? What did Addison say?"

"She said you're probably in labor." Chase kisses her on the top of the head.

"But labor doesn't make you bleed. My uterus is bleeding. Why?"

"I don't know. Let's go to the hospital." Chase escorts Michelle quickly out to the car.

Michelle can't help it, tears leak down her face as Chase drives her to the hospital. They stop at a traffic light, he looks over at her. "Don't cry." He squeezes her knee and tries to cheer her up. "Just think we're going to see our baby girl soon. Who do you think she'll look like?"

"I don't know." Michelle wipes the tears from her eyes.

"It doesn't matter." Chase smiles at her. "She's sure to be beautiful with you as a mom."

Michelle tries to smile but it only makes her cry more. "Owwww!" She screams. "It hurts!"

"Okay, okay." Chase tells her. "Squeeze my hand." He offers her one hand while he drives with the other.

"Owwwww!" She braces herself on the seat, gripping it with her fingers. "I can't take it!" She whips off her seat belt and curls over. "My belly is killing me! Owwww!"

"Practice your breathing." Chase tries to calm her down. He notices she's sweating like crazy.

"I'm scared. I don't think this is normal, Chase. It's not letting up this time." She cries. "Labor pains are supposed to come and go but this pain isn't going away."

"Okay we're almost there. I can see the entrance to the hospital. Just stay calm." Chase speeds to the hospital emergency entrance. He parks as close as he can to the doors. He hops out of the car. Michelle's still crunched over in the passenger seat. He opens the passenger door and gently pulls her out. She's crying. He notices a fresh red blood stain on the seat of the car after he pulls her out. He cradles her in his arms and runs into the ER. "My wife is in labor and bleeding!" He yells out.

"Let's get her in a room!" An ER nurse yells out. "I need an OB!"

Chase follows the nurse into an exam room. He lies Michelle on the table. "Owwww!" She shrieks. "My belly!" She clutches her abdomen. "My belly is killing me!"

"How far along is she?" The nurse asks Chase as she hooks Michelle up to monitors. Two doctors and another nurse rush in now and start examining Michelle and checking her vital signs.

"She's thirty-three weeks plus three days pregnant. Her doctor is Addison Montgomery. She's supposed to meet us in L&D but Michelle's in so much pain and bleeding so I just brought her here."

A doctor in blue scrubs yells out. "Someone page Addison Montgomery!"

The nurse hooks up a fetal monitor and starts an ultrasound while another doctor in the blue scrubs examines Michelle. "You need you to open your legs so I can examine you." He tells Michelle.

"I can't," she cries. "It hurts too much."

"Just do it, Michelle." Chase tells her, firmly. "Do it for the baby."

Michelle winces in pain as she spreads her legs for the doctor. "Owww!" She shakes and cries out.

"She's losing blood." The doctor in the blue scrubs tells the other doctor. What's her blood pressure?"

The other doctor calls out. "The baby is coming. I can see the head."

The nurse doing the ultraound yells out. "Her B/P is 90 over 40 and she's got free flowing blood in her uterus."

"She's going to need a blood transfusion. Type and cross her stat." The doctor in the blue scrubs calls out.

The doctor in the green scrubs looks at the ultrasound. "Her placenta is detaching from her uterus already. That's why she went into labor early. We need to get the baby out fast." He tells the doctor in the blue scrubs and the nurse.

"Should we prepare for a c-section?" The nurse asks.

"No! The head is just about out." The doctor in the blue scrubs responds. He guides the baby out while a nurse wipes the blood off the baby's head with a towel and suctions out her nose and mouth. "I need you to give me a good strong push to get this baby all the way out." The doctor instructs Michelle.

Michelle grunts and pushes as hard as she can. The baby girl slips out into the doctors hands along with a gush of red blood.

"Oh, crap!" The nurse exclaims at the sight of the blood pouring out. The doctor gives her a disapproving look for the comment before handing her the baby. The nurse hooks the baby up to oxygen.

"Get Addison Montgomery in here stat! She needs to get the mother to the OR now!" The doctor in the green scrubs yells. "And type and cross the mother. She needs blood stat! Hang a pack of 0- blood on her before she hemmorages." He orders the nurse.

"Is the baby okay?" Michelle asks Chase with tears streaming down her face. "Why don't I hear her crying?"

"Is the baby okay?" Chase rushes over to the nurse. The baby lets out a cry now.

"It's a girl, she's four pounds and three ounces." The nurse hands the baby to Chase. "You can hold her for a minute but we need to get her to Nicu soon. They need to x-ray her to see if she aspirated any blood during the birth."

Chase carries the baby over to Michelle. "Look at her, she's gorgeous" He hands the small baby to Michelle. "She has your face ands she's four pounds, three ounces. That's not so shabby." He smiles.

"Can I hold her?" Michelle asks. Chase hands her the baby. Michelle gives the baby a kiss on the head. "I love you." She runs her finger over the baby's cheek and then along her head of dark hair. "She's perfect, Chase, we did it."

"You did it, Michelle." Chase watches Michelle admire their daughter. "Thank you for giving me the best gift in the world."

Addison rushes into the room now."What happened?" She looks at Chase. "I was waiting for you in L&D!"

The doctor in the green scrubs answers. "Placenta abruption! The baby looks okay but the mother's suffered significant blood loss. We need to take her to the OR. I ordered a blood transfusion. The blood should be here any second to hang on her."

Addison checks Michelle out. Michelle winces in pain. "It still hurts. Why does it still hurt?" She asks Addison.

"Your uterus is still contracting. It's trying to expel the placenta." Addison notices more blood gushing out of Michelle with the contraction. "I'm going to have to take you to the OR now. You're losing too much blood."

"Will you have to do a hysterectomy?" Chase asks. "We want more children."

"I'll avoid it if I can but I can't make any promises. I can't say until I get in there and see what's going on." Addison turns to the nurses. "Get Michelle ready to go to the OR. I'm going to scrub up now." Addison hurries out of the room.

Michelle looks up at Chase with teary eyes. "Take the baby, Chase. I feel dizzy. I don't want to drop her."

"Okay." Chase takes his daughter from her.

"I'll take her down to the Nicu now." The nurse takes the small dark-haired baby from Chase.

Michelle grabs Chase's hand. "Take good care of her, she's beautiful. Make sure she has a good life."

"What are you talking about?" Chase looks at Michelle with a confused look on his face.

"In case I don't make it. Take good care of her. I love her so much."

Chase rubs Michelle's head. "Of course you're going to make it. She needs you. I _need_ you."

"I need to tell you something." Michelle says, her voice is starting to sound weak.

"Anything." Chase looks in her green eyes.

"If I don't make it you need to look in my wooden chastity box in the attic. It has my initials on it. The key is on my key chain, the one with my car keys. There's a letter in there that you need to read. Promise me you'll read it. It's very important."

"That won't be necessary, Michelle, because you're going to make it."

"I feel really weak." She lets go of his hand.

"I love you, Michelle." He hugs her and tries to hold back his tears.

"I love you, Chase, please don't hate me, Chase. Please understand I did what I did because I love you so much. Please forgive me." She's almost begging and her voice sounds so weak, just above a whisper. She's giving up all the strength she has left to talk to him.

"I forgive you for whatever and I love you." He tells her because he knows she needs to hear it.

"If you have any questions you can ask Benn. He knows about the letter."

That's not really what Chase wanted to hear but this isn't the time to argue so he pushes it out of his mind.

"You're going to be okay, Michelle. Just think of that beautiful little face. Grace-Anne needs you to be okay. She needs both of us."

Michelle smiles because he said Grace-Anne, he conceded to the name she chose. "Okay." Michelle fights to keep her eyes open.

After the nurses have placed Michelle's IV's in and have drawn her blood for the transfusion they tell Chase. "We need to get her to the OR now!"

"I love you." He gives Michelle a soft kiss on the lips before they wheel her away. Her lips feel cold to him, she's as pale as Snow White. He decides to go to the neonatal intensive care unit to check on his new daughter. "How's she doing?" He asks a nurse.

"We're doing a chest x-ray to check if she aspirated any blood during the birth. If she did she may need to be intubated and she'll need antibiotics to prevent pneumonia."

Chase nods. "I'm a pediatrician but this night has been overwhelming for me. My wife and I were taken completely by surprise by the birth tonight."

"How's your wife?"

"They just took her to the operating room. She has a placental abruption."

"Oh?" The nurse raises her eyebrows, knowing that's a serious condition. "Your daughter's x-ray should only take a minute and then you can go see her."

_Your daughter-_ Chase thinks to himself. He has a daughter thanks to Michelle. He loves her now more than ever. He sits in a chair and waits. He pulls his phone out of his pocket to call his parents.

It's 2 am now. Charlotte picks up the phone. "Hello?" She answers in sleepy voice.

"Momma, it's Chase. I'm a dad."

Charlotte sits up quickly in bed. "What? Say that again."

"Michelle had the baby. It's a girl. Well, you already knew that."

Charlotte wipes her eyes trying to wake up. "Is the baby okay? She's several weeks early."

"She's four pounds, three ounces... She has dark hair... She looks like Michelle... She's beautiful."

"How's Michelle doing?"

"She's in the OR. Addison's operating on her."

"What?" Charlotte's eyes pop open. "Why is Montgomery operating on her?"

"She has a placental abruption. That's why she went into labor early."

"How bad was it?" Charlotte gets out of bed now.

Chase sighs. "She lost a lot of blood but she'll be okay. Addison's the best."

"I'm on my way!" Charlotte hangs up the phone.

Chase takes a deep breath and lets the tears come to his eyes now.

* * *

_**REVIEW**_


	71. Chapter 71

_**CHAPTER 71**_

* * *

It's just after 2 am, Charlotte nudges Cooper awake. "Get up, Coop. Michelle had the baby."

"What?" Cooper answers in a groggy voice, not fully awake yet.

"Get up, Coop." Charlotte pulls the sheets off him. "We have to get to the hospital. Michelle had the baby tonight."

Cooper scrunches up his face and looks at the clock. "She's not due for six more weeks."

"These things happen." Now that she's sure Cooper's awake she scrambles through the dresser for clothes to wear. "Chase said the baby weighed four pounds, three ounces."

"Wow," Cooper rubs his hand over his mouth. "She really had the baby."

"No, Cooper." Charlotte says, sarcastically. "I woke you up for a practice run."

"Alright, alright." Cooper swings his legs over the side of the bed. "But what's the rush? It's 2 am. Why do we have to go now? Can't we wait until the morning to visit them?"

Charlotte pulls her pants on. "Michelle's in the OR, Addison's operating. She had a placental abruption."

"Oh, wow." Cooper stands up. "You didn't say that before." He looks for his pants. "Is she okay?"

"I don't know. Chase sounded out of it when I spoke to him." Charlotte pulls a blouse on and heads into the bathroom to splash water on her face while Cooper gets himself dressed.

It takes eighteen minutes for Charlotte and Cooper to arrive at St. Ambrose from the time Chase placed the call to his momma, between Charlotte waking Cooper up, the two of them getting dressed, brushing their teeth etc and driving time. By the time they arrive at Nicu, Chase is holding his new daughter, he looks utterly exhausted.

"Hey!" Charlotte rushes up to him and gives him a gentle hug, careful not to crush the baby he's holding. "How is she?" Charlotte looks at her newest granddaughter.

Chase swallows. "She's good." He holds an oxygen mask up to the baby's small face. The baby has an IV coming out of a scalp vein. New babies usually have the biggest veins on their scalps. "She aspirated some blood when she was born so they're giving her IV antibiotics and oxygen. Other than that she's perfect." Chase rambles. "She's four pounds plus three ounces and twenty inches long."

"That's great." Cooper nods, looking at the baby. "Congratulations, son." Cooper pats Chase on the back. "You did it."

"Well, Michelle is the one who did it." Chase looks at Charlotte. "Would you like to hold her momma?"

Charlotte grows a smile. "I'm not gonna say no to that." Charlotte sits down in a chair next to Chase. He hands her the baby. Charlotte studies her new granddaughter. "She reminds me of Noah."

"Really?" Cooper screws up his face. "Noah was blonde. She's got dark hair."

"I don't mean looks, Noah was a preemie when he was born but he was much smaller than her."

"She's considered a moderately preterm baby, momma. She's not a preemie like Noah was. Wasn't Noah only two and a half pounds when he was born?"

"He was." Charlotte nods. "I'm used to Andie and her big babies now. Michael Nikolas was over nine pounds when he was born."

Chase can't take his eyes off his new daughter. "I think she's going to be petite like Michelle."

"I don't know." Cooper shakes his head. "Remember she's six and a half weeks early. She would have been a big one if she went full term."

"Maybe." Charlotte shrugs. "She does look a lot like Michelle. Did you call her family?" Charlotte asks Chase.

Chase takes a deep breath and lets out a sigh. "I just called you and dad."

"Why?" Cooper asks, in a deep voice. "You should call Michelle's family. They might want to come up from San Diego."

"I figured I'd wait until she's out of surgery. I don't want to worry them in the middle of the night."

"He has a point." Charlotte tells Cooper.

"How long has she been in surgery?" Cooper asks.

Chase looks up at the clock. "About a half hour."

"That's not long." Cooper nods.

"So what's this little darlin's name?" Charlotte asks Chase.

"Grace-Anne."

"I like it. A pretty name for a pretty girl." Charlotte smiles looking at the baby.

"Yeah." Chase agrees. "Michelle liked Grace and Anne is after her mother who died when she was young."

"That's nice." Cooper nods before he looks up to see Addison coming towards them. Addison's looking at the ground. Cooper can tell by her expression that it's not going to be good news, maybe Addison had to remove Michelle's uterus and she has to give Chase the news that Michelle can't have anymore children. Addison knows they want a big family.

Charlotte watches Addison walk over and feels her stomach drop. She knows Addison shouldn't be done with the surgery yet, it's only been a half hour. Something's wrong. Addison's looking at the floor. She's seen Addison do that before when approaching families with news that's hard to share. She can't take her eyes off of Montgomery as she approaches them. Charlotte waits for Montgomery to speak, hoping her thoughts are wrong.

Addison stops in front of Chase. Chase looks up. "You're finished already? How's Michelle?"

"Uhm…-" Addison swallows. "I'm sorry…-"

Chase screws up his face. "What are you sorry about?"

Addison takes a deep breath before she answers. "I'm sorry. I did everything I could but we lost her on the table. She lost too much blood."

"What!" Chase exclaims. "That's not possible! That's impossible!"

Addison remains calm, talking to Charlotte and Cooper now. "Michelle had a placental abruption. She lost over half her blood before the surgery."

"Didn't you transfuse her!" Chase demands.

"We transfused her with blood and platelets in the operating room but she was already in DIC. Her blood wouldn't clot. She bled out on us and coded as soon as I made the incision. We were working on her with the paddles this whole time. After thirty minutes I had to call it."

"No! No!" Chase exclaims. He jumps up out of his seat. "This isn't happening! This isn't happening to us! Michelle waited so long for Grace. It's not happening! This has to be a bad dream!"

Addison looks on with tears in her eyes. Cooper gets up and grabs his son. He grips him into a bear hug. "I'm so sorry, Chase. I'm so sorry, son." Chase sobs in Cooper's arms.

Charlotte can't look at her son without breaking down herself, so she doesn't. She looks at Addison and then looks down at the baby. She tries to block out Chase's sobbing so she doesn't lose it herself. She needs to be strong for her son and for his baby. She takes a deep breath and focuses on keeping it together. This baby girl is going to need her.

Cooper looks over and tells Charlotte. "I'm going to take him to a private room. Maybe your office?"

Charlotte doesn't take her eyes off the baby. She just nods.

Cooper escorts a sobbing Chase down the hall. Once they can no longer hear his sobs Addison sits down next to Charlotte.

"How do I help him, Montgomery? How do I help my son get through this?"

"Just be there for him. You need to stay strong for him."

"This baby girl has no momma." Charlotte tells Addison, her voice cracking.

"You need to stay strong." Addison tells her again.

Charlotte gives a hard swallow before responding. "Oh.…-I just pulled every trick in the book to keep from breaking down. My tongue's damn near bleeding from biting it so hard and my hand's sore from me pinching it, but the main thing that kept me from losing it was this baby. I couldn't break down with her in my arms. I need to keep it together for this baby. I owe it to Michelle to look out for her baby girl. This baby girl has no momma." Charlotte's lip starts to quiver.

"Stay strong, Charlotte. Stay strong. Do it for Michelle." Addison squeezes Charlotte's hand. "Michelle needs you to be strong for Chase _and _her baby. They don't have anyone else."

"Okay." Charlotte nods. "I'm strong. I'm not gonna cry." Charlotte looks straight ahead and convinces herself.

"And if you need _anything_, Charlotte, anything at all, I'm here." Addison squeezes Charlotte's hand.

"Thank you, Montgomery." Charlotte bites her lip and keeps it together for both Chase and his baby.

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	72. Chapter 72

_A/N- I can only answer your questions if you have an account. I can't answer anonymous questions without spoiling it for everyone, but thanks for reviewing =)._

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**CHAPTER**_** 72**_

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Family and friends have been coming and going from the Freedman house all day offering their condolences to the family. Michelle's father and sister from San Diego are staying at the Freedman house during the days of the funeral. Marley and Noah are also in town for the somber event. Dylan flew in from Texas when Lila called to give him the news. Violet and Pete sit on the couch consoling Cooper. Addison sits in the kitchen with Charlotte and Andie. Nicky's outside with the kids playing basketball, trying to shield them from the grief all around. Ruby is especially upset. Michelle had become her confident; her go to older sister for advice and shopping. She sits on Drew's lap and weeps in a chair in the far corner of the room. Nobody expected this.

Charlotte's keeping it under control. She has a schedule posted on the fridge. Chase and the baby are never to be left alone. She has the schedule broken up into blocks of time; family members are assigned to be with Chase and baby Grace at every hour of the day. Marley and Noah are up at the hospital; it's their time to sit with the baby. Marley holds Grace-Anne and wipes her own eyes. "It's not fair." She tells Noah. "Michelle wanted this baby so bad."

"At least Michelle was able to hold her before she died. She was able to see her baby's face, that had to be comforting to her." Noah stares at his new niece.

"Do you think Chase was right?" Marley tries to feed the four pound baby a bottle.

"About what?"

"At the funeral, he told your momma that Michelle knew she was going to die. She felt weak and told him to take good care of Grace. She also told him she left him some kind of letter for him to read if she died."

Noah shrugs. "I guess she thought she might die but she must have had some hope that Addison would save her in the OR."

"It's so sad." Marley shakes her head. "Michelle was around our age. She was only twenty-six."

Noah looks up at the ceiling. "I don't know why these things happen. I don't know how my brother is ever going to get over this."

"At least he has Grace-Anne. She could have died too if she inhaled too much blood."

"I don't even want to think about that." Noah shakes his head. "If Chase didn't have the baby he would have no motivation to go on."

* * *

_Back at the Freedman house-_

Harper runs into the kitchen and hugs Andie tight. "I love you, momma."

"I love you too, peanut." Andie pulls Harper up onto her lap.

"Please don't have anymore babies, momma." Harper tells her momma. Charlotte and Addison sit at the kitchen table and listen.

"Why do you say that?" Andie asks Harper. Andie is already pregnant and has known for several weeks.

"I don't want you to die like Aunt Michelle."

"That's not gonna happen to me." Andie hugs Harper. "I had four babies already and I'm just fine. Nana Charlotte had four babies too and she's fine. Momma's don't normally die when they have babies."

"But why did Aunt Michelle die?"

Addison answers. "What happened to your Aunt Michelle was unlucky, Harper. It only happens to a very small amount of the population."

"I still don't want my momma to have anymore babies. I don't want to take any chances." Harper looks up at Andie. "Promise me, momma." Harper begs Andie. Charlotte looks on.

"Don't worry about me, Harper," Andie instructs. "We need to take care of Uncle Chase now because he's very sad and lonely. This is going to be a hard time for him. Can you help us take care of Uncle Chase?"

"What can _I_ do?" Harper asks.

"Look at the schedule and see whose turn it is to sit with him."

Harper jumps up to look at the schedule. Next she looks at the clock on the wall. "It's grandpa's turn."

"Okay, go check with Grandpa and see what he needs you to do. It can be something as simple as drawing Uncle Chase a picture to cheer him up or fixing him his favorite snack to eat."

Harper runs out of the kitchen in search of Cooper and Chase.

Charlotte looks over at Andie. "When were you going to tell me you were pregnant?"

"Momma?" Andie grimaces. "Why are you asking me this now?"

"The child begged you not to have another baby. You wouldn't commit to her."

"Momma, Addison explained to Harper what happened to Michelle was rare."

"You could have promised the kid you weren't having another baby to make her feel better but you wouldn't."

"Momma?" Andie's feeling uncomfortable having this conversation in front of Addison.

"I should go." Addison gets up, sensing the hostility and remembering having a conversation about this with Charlotte a month back.

"You wouldn't promise her because you didn't want to lie to her. Am I right?" Charlotte glares at Andie.

Andie doesn't answer.

"I thought so." Charlotte gets up and leaves the kitchen.

"Momma?" Andie calls after her. "I don't understand why this has to be an issue for you?"

Danielle and Lucas walk into the kitchen. "How are you holding up?" Danielle hugs Andie.

"I think I'm still in shock. I can't believe Michelle is gone." Andie answers.

"We're all shocked." Lucas sits down at the kitchen table. "Nobody expected this. Michelle was young, healthy, beautiful. She still had her whole life to live."

"She was beautiful." Danielle nods. "We always told her at the office that she chose the wrong career. She could have made a fortune as a model."

Ruby walks in the kitchen now, overhearing them. "But Michelle wasn't like that. She wasn't one to flaunt her looks. She looked at people for their inner beauty. I should know. She was kind to me. She took me shopping and taught me not to worry about what people thought of me when I was overweight. She didn't judge people."

Danielle sighs. "They say only the good die young."

"How's Chase doing?" Lucas asks.

"Not good." Andie tells him. "He has to move along for the baby. That's his only light in all this."

"Thank goodness she made it." Danielle adds. "My mother was a mess that night after Michelle died. She called me crying and told me about Michelle. She feels responsible as Michelle's doctor."

"She did everything she could." Lucas tells Danielle. "Michelle was in DIC, there was nothing she could do at that point."

"I know but I don't know how she'll be able to look at Chase or that baby. My mom doesn't show it but I'm telling you she's dying inside because of this." Danielle tells them all. "She's retiring full time now. She says she wishes she did it before this all happened."

"Nobody blames her." Andie reassures Daneille.

"She blames herself because she was Michelle's doctor and I don't know how to make her stop."

Lucas adds. "I hate to say this cliché but time heals all wounds. Give it time." He tells Danielle. "It's a fresh wound right now. In time your mom will get over feeling that way. Chase will be able to smile again. Everything gets easier in time."

Andie shakes her head. "But time won't bring Grace-Anne her momma back."

Ruby sobs and runs out of the kitchen into Drew's arms.

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	73. Chapter 73

_**CHAPTER 73**_

* * *

Charlotte and Cooper invite everyone back to their house after the funeral service. Michelle's father and sister decide to drive home with their friends from San Diego after they visit with Grace-Anne at the hospital.

"Do you want me to take you up to see Grace?" Cooper asks Chase.

"Let Michelle's dad have some time alone with her first. I'll stay here." Chase sits on the couch.

Noah carries in a six foot Italian hero while Marley and Danielle carry in some salads. "The funeral home sure did give us enough food." Charlotte comments. "I'll fix you a plate, Chase."

Chase shakes his head. "I can't eat anything, momma."

"You have to eat."

"I can't. I'll throw up." Chase takes a deep breath.

"Let him be." Cooper tells Charlotte. "He'll eat when he's hungry."

People start filing in the house to offer Chase their condolences. He can hear them but he doesn't make out the words. His mind is somewhere else. All he thinks about are those last few hours he had with Michelle before she died. He can't stop wishing that he took her to the hospital the first time she complained of a shooting abdominal pain. She wasn't bleeding yet then. That must have been when the placenta first started to separate from her uterus, he thinks now. Surely they could have saved her life if he brought her to the hospital then but instead he told her the baby was probably lying on a nerve. Nerves cause the shooting sharp kind of pain she described to him. Maybe if he wasn't a doctor he wouldn't have known that and he would have taken her to the hospital. He thinks about the last time he spoke to her before they took her to the OR. She was telling him about a box in the attic with her initials on it. The key to the locked box is on her keychain with her car keys. She told him she left him a letter but he's not ready to read it. Not now when he's hurting so bad.

"Are you okay, Chase?" Lucas sits down next to him.

"No." Chase shakes his head. "I'm not okay."

"I shouldn't have asked that." Lucas swallows. "That was s bad question."

Ruby helps Drew set out the food for the guests. "Do you agree with what the pastor said about Grace-Anne?"

"What did he say again?" Drew pulls the plastic wrap off the hero.

"He told us we shouldn't feel sad she doesn't have her mum because she has a dozen mums to look after her." Ruby reminds.

Drew shakes his head. "I don't agree with that. Every kid needs their momma. Nobody could ever love you as much as your mother does."

"It's not true in my case." Ruby frowns. "My mum could care less about what's going on in my life. I hope I find someone to love me more than she does."

"You already have." Drew takes Ruby's hand and squeezes it.

"Thank you for saying that, I plan to be there for Grace-Anne as much as I can. Michelle was my mate, she was there for me. She would listen to me and take me shopping. I'm going to repay her by being there for her daughter."

Drew furrows his brow.

"What's wrong? Don't you want me too?"

"It's not that. I was just thinking about what happened with Tess. She was Chase's fiancé before he met Michelle."

"What happened with her?" Ruby asks, curious.

"Chase started dating Tess when they were sixteen. She was really nice and we all thought they made the perfect couple but after ten years they split up. Tess took off and moved to Georgia. We never hear from her which is sad, but it's worse for Harper and Charley. They knew Tess since they were born. She was in the room with Andie when she gave birth to them because Tess wanted to be an obstetrician. She's been their Aunt Tess from the beginning. She was like a second mother to them and now she's just gone."

"What does that have to do with me?"

"We're almost sixteen. What if the same thing happens to us? Harper and Charley have their momma but if you left, Grace-Anne would have nobody. Andie has four kids of her own to take care of. Michelle's sister lives in San Diego. I don't know where Noah and Marley will live when they graduate from medical school. Who will Grace-Anne have as a mother figure?"

"She'll have me and I promise if we break up one day. I'll stay in Grace's life." Ruby tells Drew. "I owe it to Michelle for being a good mate to me."

"You're like the best person I know." Drew give Ruby a soft kiss on the lips.

* * *

"How are you doing?" Violet asks Charlotte as she fixes herself a plate of food.

"Honestly, I feel helpless. My son is hurting and I can't help him."

"There's nothing you can do to take his pain away, Charlotte. The best thing you can do for Chase is be there to listen to him."

Charlotte nods.

"How's Cooper handling it?"

"He feels the same as me. We just want to take Chase's pain away."

"In time Charlotte, just like a physical wound it takes time to heal." Violet spoons some potato salad on her plate.

Charlotte lets out a deep sigh. "Then invent me a time machine so I could fast forward through time and get beyond all this pain my family is going through."

"I wish I could." Violet rubs Charlotte's arm. "Where's Addison?"

"I invited her and Sam to come back here for food but I don't think she can look at Chase."

"Why?"

"She was the doctor in charge when Michelle died. She feels responsible for all this."

"Was there anything Addison could have done differently to change the outcome?" Violet sits down with her plate.

"Not that night. Michelle was in DIC before Addison even got her in the OR." Charlotte sits down next to Violet, holding a warm cup of coffee between her hands. "Addison had been doing ultrasounds on Michelle every two weeks while she was pregnant because she was high risk."

"Right," Violet nods. "She lost two prior pregnancies and one was at eighteen weeks...-"

Charlotte continues the sentence for Violet. "Addison was checking the baby, doing ultrasounds every two weeks up until Michelle was twenty eight weeks pregnant but then she stopped doing them because everything was perfectly normal."

"So, if Addison had continued the frequent ultrasounds maybe she would have been able to pick up the problem with the placenta seperating earlier and …-"

"Who knows?" Charlotte takes a sip of her coffee. "She could have done an ultrasound a day earlier and there may have been no sign of trouble until the placenta began to separate which was when the bleeding started. It's nobody's fault but everybody feels like they should have done more."

"That's human nature." Violet takes a bite of her hero.

"How are your grandchildren?" Charlotte asks.

"Growing like weeds as Pete would say. Rosie's in fifth grade and Clove is walking already."

"It's great isn't it?" Charlotte nods at Violet. "Being a grandma?"

"It is." Violet smiles. "It's true what they say about spoiling them rotten and being able to hand them back to the parents whenever you feel like it."

Charlotte shakes her head again. "I don't think I'll be able to do that with Chase. He'll be a single father and he's a doctor. He's going to need my help."

"He can always hire a nanny to help out."

Charlotte rolls her eyes. "Just what I didn't want...-all my grandchildren to grow up with nannies like I did."

"When is Grace-Anne coming home from the hospital?"

"Well," Charlotte thinks. "She needs a week on the IV antibiotics and then she has to be able to eat enough to gain weight so I'd say maybe two more weeks in the NICU until we can bring her home."

"Will Chase and Grace-Anne stay with you or go to back to Chase and Michelle's house?"

"I'll leave that up to my son." Charlotte thinks. "They're welcome to stay here as long as he needs too."

"You're a good momma." Violet smiles at her old friend.

Charlotte sighs. "I try."

* * *

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	74. Chapter 74

_**CHAPTER 74**_

* * *

Six days later, Andie knocks on the door of her parents house, after waiting nearly a minute Cooper answers. "Come in, Andie Candy."

Andie walks in, looking around. "Where's momma?"

"At the hospital, sitting with Grace-Anne. I have the evening shift."

Andie makes herself at home, nestling into the couch. "Where's Chase?"

"He's meeting with Alexis."

"Why?" Andie furrows her brow.

"Alexis was a psychiatrist before she changed her specialty to med-surg. Your momma and I thought it would be good for Chase to talk to someone objective, who didn't know Michelle. Sometimes it's easier that way."

"Did Alexis get the Chief of Staff job?"

"She had her interview with the hospital board yesterday. We should hear their decision sometime soon. Your momma pushed for Alexis, now it's a wait and see."

"I hope she gets it."

"Me too. Your momma needs to retire, especially now. Chase and Grace-Anne are going to need us all. Your momma doesn't want Grace to be raised by nannies."

Andie makes a sour face. "Like my kids?"

"Your momma was raised by nannies. She doesn't want that lifestyle for her grandchildren."

Andie explains. "But it's different with me. Nana Augusta hired nannies because she was drinking and popping pills. She was emotionally unavailable for her children. I understand why momma hated that but it's not the same thing with me. I don't drink or abuse pills. I have a nanny to take the physical load off me so I can have some time to myself to get a haircut or a massage. Every mom needs a little space for themselves... to stay themselves...and Nicky and I can afford to do that. I'm there for my kids. We eat breakfast and dinner together as a family everyday. When they're sick or hurt I'm at their side. The nanny isn't raising my kids. She's just helping me out. She's there to make my life easier." Andie stresses to Cooper.

Cooper raises his eyebrows "So, that you could have a fifth kid?"

Andie hesitates a few seconds before answering. "To be honest with you, dad, yes. Nicky wants another baby. He hired the nanny so I wouldn't have to lean on you and momma as much."

A light goes on in Cooper's head. His eyes get bright with his thoughts.

"What?" Andie notices his enlightened expression.

"Maybe _that's_ your momma's problem with the nanny."

"What?" Andie still doesn't get it.

"Andy Candy, your momma has worked two jobs and raised four kids most of her adult life. She thrives on the adrenaline rush and being needed. Hiring a nanny means you don't need her. She doesn't want to spend her retirement sitting around the house watching Cake Boss with me."

"Oh?" Andie thinks. "But now Chase needs her. Chase needs her more than me."

Cooper shrugs. "So, maybe your momma will lighten up on you."

Andie nods. "I hope."

* * *

Charlotte loaned Alexis her office for the afternoon so she could talk to Chase about how he's been coping. Chase sits on the couch while Alexis Rhodes sits behind Charlotte's desk which with any luck will be her desk soon. "Talk to me Chase." Michelle watches him, carefully observing his appearance and demeanor.

"What do you want me to say? That I miss my wife? That I wish she didn't die?

"Say whatever's on your mind."

"I just did." Chase leans back on the couch and folds his arms against his chest.

"Tell me your feelings about Grace-Anne."

"She's my baby. She's all I have left of Michelle. I love her."

"Your momma tells me you haven't been up to see the baby as much as she would expect over the past few days. She thinks you might be avoiding the baby. Can you tell me why?"

Chase shakes his head. "I've had a lot on my mind."

"Do you blame the baby for Michelle's death?"

Chase unfolds his arms and looks at Alexis like she's crazy. "Of course not. She's a newborn. How can I blame her?"

"Some men aren't able to look at their newborns after their wife dies in childbirth. They know it's not directly the infants fault but they also know if it wasn't for that particular infant their wife would still be alive."

"That's not it. That's not why." Chase shakes his head and folds his arms again.

"So, tell me why."

"If I tell you, you're going to have to swear on your life that you'll never breathe a word to anyone." Chase squints his eyes when he talks.

"I can't tell anyone what you tell me as part of our patient-doctor confidentiality clause and as your friend I promise you I will not breathe a word of what you tell me to anyone."

Chase looks directly in Alexis's eyes. "Grace-Anne may not be my daughter."

"Go on." Alexis tells him.

"Before Michelle died, before they took her to the OR, Michelle told me she left an important letter for me to read if she died. It's locked up in a box in the attic. She told me if I had any questions to ask Benn Golder. He knows about the letter."

"Who's Benn Golder?"

"He's Michelle's ex. He dumped her before she met me. Turns out he was married for the two years he dated Michelle and didn't tell her. He decided to go back to his wife after he got her pregnant, he dumped Michelle. Can you believe she defended him to me? She told me he was a nice guy after he did that to her."

"Love is blind." Alexis suggests.

"I don't think she ever stopped loving him."

"Do you think she was cheating on you?"

"Drew's girlfriend saw Michelle and Benn talking at the mall a few months ago. She said Michelle was crying and it looked like they were having a serious conversation. I asked Michelle about it; she said they were just friends and talking. I believed her."

"And now you don't?"

"I asked Michelle not to see him again and as far as I know she didn't. She told me a few weeks ago she hadn't spoke to him since that day at the mall."

"So do you think the baby might be Benn's?"

Chase nods his head."I think that's what the letter is about. That's probably what they were talking about at the mall a few months ago when she was crying. She was telling him he could be the father. Maybe it didn't go well and he didn't want to admit to it. He already has a child with his ex-wife."

"Why don't you open the letter and find out?"

Chase shakes his head "Because this is probably my only chance to be a dad. I don't want to know it if I'm _not_ Grace-Anne's father."

"Do you think Michelle knew who the father is?"

Chase shrugs before answering. "No, she wouldn't have done any kind of pre-natal paternity test when she was pregnant; she would have been too afraid to risk a miscarriage. She never let on to me that she thought it was Benn's baby but I just don't know."

Alexis swallows. "You know, Chase, the letter may have nothing to do with Grace-Anne. It could be about a completely unrelated matter."

"I thought about that but I can't come up with anything else. Believe me, I've tried. Before they took her to the OR Michelle asked me to forgive her, she begged me not to hate her for what she did. I mean, what else could it be if she wasn't cheating on me? And why would Benn be the only one to know about it?"

Alexis shakes her head. "The only way you'll ever know is if you open that box and read the letter."

"I'm afraid if I do and I find out that Benn is the father, I'll lose Grace-Anne."

"Does Grace-Anne look like Benn?"

"No." Chase shakes his head. "She looks just like a mini Michelle."

"Babies change quickly when they're young. She may look more like you in a week or two."

"Or, she may look like Benn." Chase suggests.

"And that's why you're afraid to go visit with her? You're afraid you may see something in her that tells you she's Benn's daughter."

Chase slowly nods his head.

"Has Benn come to visit the baby yet?"

"No." Chase shakes his head.

"Then he must not be interested in staking a claim to her." Michelle suggests.

"Not yet." Chase shrugs. "He may be grieving over Michelle and not want to see the baby, maybe he blames her like you said some fathers do."

Alexis advises Chase, "your name is on the birth certificate. Legally you are her father. Do you think you could raise her as your own if she was Benn's daughter, knowing he doesn't want to raise her?"

Chase nods. "I think so." Chase thinks again before saying. "I know so."

"Then I suggest you forget about the letter and just raise her as your daughter. You'll need to go visit her and hold her, bond with her."

Chase nods. "That's what I would have done if Michelle didn't die. We were going to raise her together."

"And remember, Chase. There's a fifty-fifty chance, she may very well be your daughter."

Chase stands up and extends his hand to Alexis. "Thank you, this helped a lot."

Alexis stands up to shake his hand. "I'm glad I could help. Please don't hesitate to call me if you need to talk again."

"Okay." Chase sighs. "I'm going to go see my daughter now."

* * *

Charlotte's sitting in the nursery feeding Grace-Anne a bottle. Chase approaches them. "Hi." Charlotte gives him a soft smile. "How did your meeting go with Alexis?"

Chase has his hands in his pants pockets, he nods. "It went well. Alexis gave me some good advice."

"Great." Charlotte smiles. "Do you want to hold your daughter?"

"As a matter of fact I do." Chase sits in a chair while Charlotte passes the dark haired baby to him.

Chase studies her face. "She looks so much like Michelle."

"She does." Charlotte agrees. "But she has your body type. She's going to be tall like you and your dad."

"Why do you say that?"

"Look at her long fingers and feet. She's long for being born six weeks early. She's the length of a full term baby, just on the skinny side."

Chase thinks, Benn is tall too so this doesn't help much. "Is there anything else about her that reminds you of me as a baby?" Chase asks Charlotte, digging for info.

"She's sweet and quiet like you were as a baby. Noah and Drew were scutches, fussin' and cryin' all the time, but you were a quiet, content baby."

That doesn't help much because Chase doesn't know how Michelle behaved as a baby. She could have been easy-going too."

"Anything else, momma?"

"She has your lips. Look at her for yourself after you take the bottle out of her mouth."

Chase sighs, that's something. He'll take it.

* * *

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	75. Chapter 75

_**CHAPTER 75**_

* * *

It's early when Andie rings the door bell at her parents house, her momma answers.

"Hi." Charlotte answers a little agitated, and Andie knows why. That's partly why she's here- to get to the bottom of it.

"Look, I know it's early, momma, but I thought I might be able to talk you into going out for breakfast."

"Already ate." Charlotte glances at Andie's new designer dress and shoes. "Nicky's doing well." she comments.

"Yeah." Andie sighs, and her voice has a little edge when she tells her momma. "Let me in, we need to talk."

Charlotte smirks a little at that. "Come on in." She opens the door wider for her only daughter.

Andie strolls over to the couch where she sits on the edge. "I talked to daddy the other day, we figured out why you're disappointed I'm pregnant again."

Andie's right, Charlotte is disappointed, Charlotte folds her arms. "This is gonna be good." She sits in the chair opposite the couch.

"Daddy and I think that since Nicky and I hired a nanny you think we don't need you anymore." Andie continues while Charlotte quietly listens. "The kids and I have depended on you so much especially while Nicky was away on his tour and Hope needed surgery but momma Nicky just wants to give you a break after daddy had the heart attack. That's why we hired the nanny, not because we don't want your help. We're trying to take the pressure off you and daddy."

Charlotte doesn't answer. She listens to her daughter as she continues to ramble on with her theory.

"I'd fire the nanny right now if I thought it would be good for us but right now Chase needs you full time to help him get through his grief and to help take care of Grace-Anne."

Charlotte nods and swallows before she talks. "I will be helping out with Chase and the baby _and_ I'm worried about you."

"Why momma?"

It's Charlotte's turn to talk. "I never told you this but what happened to Chase and Michelle happened to my momma's sister, not exactly in the same way but things happen Andie. The more chances you take the more likely something can go wrong, you know that."

Andie looks at Charlotte, curiously. "What are you talking about, momma? What happened to grandma's sister?"

Charlotte lets out a sigh before explaining. "My Aunt Becky had four healthy children and for no good reason she threw a blood clot and died when she was pregnant with the fifth. It threw my momma over the edge. That's when she started drinking heavily. She lost her only sister, her sister's husband hired a nanny to take care of the four kids. That's when my momma first became an alcoholic. She kept saying her sister should have been happy with the four rug rats she had. Now she and the fifth baby are dead and the other four have no momma."

Andie screws up her nose. "Why didn't you ever tell me or daddy this before?"

"I didn't know my aunt well. I was very young when she died. Big daddy told me the story when he was explainin' why my momma took up drinkin'. My momma doesn't talk about her sister. Why would I?"

"Oh?" Andie nods. "Are you afraid that will happen to me? Because you shouldn't. I'm healthy as a horse."

"So was she." Charlotte looks at her daughter. "I just don't know why you want to have all these kids and put your body at risk."

"Momma, that woman on TV has twenty-three children and she's still alive and kickin'."

"Is that what you're goin' for? You and Nicky want your own reality show?" She asks, sarcastically.

Andie shakes her head. "I promise you, momma, this will be the last one."

Charlotte nods and changes the subject. Andie's already pregnant. There's no point in beatin' the issue. "I was going to call you. I need favor."

"What?" Andie asks

Charlotte takes a deep breath and sighs. "It's really Nicky who I need the favor from."

"What do you need from Nicky?"

"You know Chase hasn't been back to the house since Michelle died. Your father and I have been going over there to pick up his mail and water the plants."

"Daddy told me."

"Grace-Anne will be coming home from the hospital in a week, Chase wants to stay here. Michelle and Chase set up the nursery already at their house. I need Nicky and Cody to go over there and pack up the crib and nursery furniture and bring it here. There's a changing table, a dresser, a rocking chair. I'll get Drew to help. Your father is too old for moving heavy furniture and Chase won't look at the house."

"It's fine, momma. I'm meeting Nicky for lunch today. I'll ask him to go over there and get the baby furniture with Cody sometime this week."

"Thank you, Sweet Pea." Charlotte gets up to hug her daughter.

"I still love it when you call me Sweet Pea."

"Good then." Charlotte smirks. "Because I don't ever plan on stopping. Not even when you're an old lady."

Andie laughs. "I'm happy you plan on still being around when I'm an old lady."

"I'm gonna be around forever, Sweet Pea." Charlotte laughs as she walks Andie out the door.

* * *

Chase sits in the Nicu at St. Ambrose feeding his new daughter. Lila Wilder surprises him with a visit. "Lila?" He looks up. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see the baby and to bring you these." She pulls some baby clothes out of a bag. "This one is new. I bought it for Grace-Anne." Lila holds up a little pink cotton dress along with pink and white striped tights. There's a matching elastic headband.

"Michelle would've love this outfit." Chase looks at the tiny pink dress.

"I have a bunch of other stuff too. Clove was over nine pounds when she was born. She wasn't able to wear newborn sized clothes very long. I have all these newborn outfits I got at my shower. They should fit Grace-Anne better."

"Thank you for thinking of us." Chase nods.

"How are you holding up?" Lila sits down next to him.

"It's hard. The worst part is I keep thinking Michelle is missing all this. She wanted this baby so bad and she's going to miss it all. She doesn't get to put that little pink dress you bought for Grace on her. She doesn't get to hold Grace or feed her. It's just so unfair." Chase grits his teeth.

Lila listens. She doesn't know what else to say so she says." Michelle's watching you and Grace from Heaven."

Chase rolls his eyes. "Excuse me if my faith is shaky right now. My daughter has no mother. My wife doesn't get to be with her baby."

"I understand." Lila nods.

Chase asks Lila out of the blue. "Who do you think Grace-Anne looks like?"

Lila studies the baby. "Uhm…I see a lot of Michelle in her but I can see some of you in her too so I guess she's a mixture of the two of you."

"What about her do you think looks like me?"

Lila looks at the newborn and answers. "She looks like Michelle from the nose up and you from the mouth down."

"Really?" This makes Chase happy because his momma also thinks the baby has his mouth. She shouldn't have the same mouth as him if she were Benn's biological daughter.

"Yeah." Lila nods. "She definitely has your kind of mouth."

"Good." Chase nods.

* * *

Tess and Damien settle into opposite sides of a booth, Tess hands Brayden his sippy cup while Damien flips his menu open

"I wanna eat!" Brayden tells her.

"The waitress will be here in a minute, Bray-Bud." Tess gives him some paper and crayons to play with while she skims over both the children and adult menus.

Damien skims his menu too and lists off all the greasy foods he doesn't eat. This is another one of those family restaurants with mostly fried food on the menu. He doesn't want to order a salad so he looks for the sandwich section. He glances up at Tess, who's frowning over her own menu.

"What's your problem?" He asks.

"I'm looking for something you would like, something Brayden would like and something I would like to eat, all at the same time."

"I can order for myself."

Tess tells him. "I don't wanna listen to you complain about having to order a bland chicken sandwich again. I'm trying to find something you'll enjoy that's not greasy and fattening."

Their waitress brings water, and asks if they're ready to order.

"I'll have the Philly Cheese Steak." Damien orders. Tess is shocked. She's never seen him order something like that before. He's into body building and healthy dieting.

"I'll have the same." Tess closes the menu. "And my son will have the chicken nuggets and fries."

"We're going badass tonight." Damien smiles.

"Wow!" Tess smiles. "I'm impressed, a Philly Cheese Steak?"

"You're corrupting me." He snickers, then adds. "What the hell, a guy's gotta live a little."

"Aww... I _am_ corrupting you."

"Yeah well, you better stick with me when I gain a hundred pounds." He winks at her.

"Uh..Oh." Tess laughs. "I better call the waitress back over and change that order to a salad."

"You better not. I'm looking forward to my heart attack on a bun."

Brayden colors quietly while Tess and Damien joke around with each other. Tess relaxes, maybe this family thing with her Damien and Brayden can work out after all, she thinks.

* * *

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	76. Chapter 76

_**CHAPTER 76**_

* * *

One week later:

This is definitely not how he pictured it, Chase thinks, as he dresses his five pound daughter in a dark pink romper. Little red flower pedals adorn the neckline, bordered in white trim.

"Is she planning to swim home?" His momma walks up to them and makes an attempt at humor.

He manages to conjure up a small smile to acknowledge his momma is trying to lighten the mood on this supposedly special occasion. Taking his first-born home from the hospital should be a happy event, but it's clouded today because his baby's momma can't be there to share it. He looks up at his own momma with sad eyes, telling her, "Michelle bought Grace-Anne this outfit specifically to take her home from the hospital in. She thought the dark pink would show up good in pictures."

"It's a beautiful outfit for a beautiful little girl." Charlotte smiles at her new grandaughter while giving Chase a gentle pat on the back.

Chase continues to talk. "I know it's kinda big and it looks like she's swimming in it but we expected her to weigh more than five pounds. Lila came up last week and brought some newborn clothes that Clove never wore because she was a big baby. I'll put her in that stuff when we get home."

Charlotte presses her lips together. "Can I get a picture before I take you both home?"

"Sure." Chase picks up his daughter and tries to manage to smile for the camera, all he can think of is how Michelle should be in this picture with them but she's not. After the picture, he asks Charlotte. "How am I gonna do this, momma?"

Charlotte knows exactly what he's thinking and her heart breaks for him, it breaks for Michelle not being able to enjoy this moment and it breaks for her granddaughter who will never know the sound of her own momma's voice. She wants to cry but bites her own lip and remembers why she can't, she needs to stay strong for them. Someone has to or they'll never be able to make the drive home. "I'll help you." She tells him. "Let's get another picture, it's okay if you don't smile, she'll understand why when she's older."

Chase holds Grace-Anne in his arms and stares at the baby while Charlotte snaps a few pictures. He doesn't look at the camera, he just looks at the baby.

"Those came out good." Charlotte tells him. 'She'll appreciate them one day."

"I should have taken a picture of Michelle holding Grace-Anne before they took her to the OR. I could kick myself for not getting a picture of them together." Chase shakes his head in frustration.

"You had no idea, Chase." Charlotte sighs. "And I imagine it was chaotic in the room that night, nobody would have thought to take a picture."

Chase shakes his head. "I wish I did, then Grace-Anne would have at least that to remember her short time with Michelle by."

"I'll bet Michelle wasn't looking her best at that moment. Michelle was a beautiful woman, Grace Anne will know who her momma was from all the photos you have of her at home."

The nurse walks over with the discharge papers. "Just sign on the bottom line and you're free to go." The nurse hands Chase the papers along with a diaper bag filled with formula and other goodies, courtesy of the formula company.

Chase signs the papers. "Thank you."

"Good luck with her, she's beautiful. She looks like you." The nurse tells him before she takes the papers from him and walks away.

Chase buckles Grace-Anne into her infant seat before carrying her out of the Nicu with Charlotte. "The nurse said she looks like me, do you think she was just saying it to be nice or do you really think she looks like me, momma?"

Charlotte walks through the hospital halls with him. "When she was first born she looked just like Michelle but now that she's filling out, I can see more of you in her."

"Really? You're not just saying that to be nice?"

Charlotte furrows her brow. "Why would I wanna do that?"

Chase just shrugs. He doesn't want to tell his momma his concerns that Grace-Anne may be Benn Golden's daughter.

They walk out the exit of the hospital where Cooper is waiting for them. He pulls the car up to the door and smiles. "Your chariot awaits you."

Chase opens the car door and shifts the infant seat into the base until it clicks in. He sits down in the backseat near the baby while Charlotte sits in the front passenger seat. Cooper pulls away. Chase doesn't cry, he just swallows as they pull out of the hospital parking lot. He should be the one driving his baby home with Michelle in the passenger seat. This is so screwed up, he swallows hard again. Cooper looks at him in the rear view mirror. He knows what his son is thinking about. He doesn't know how to take the pain away so he says. "How about those Lakers? Did you catch the game last night?"

Chase is surprised at the question but responds, "yeah… I did. It was a good game."

"Did you see that ref call the foul?"

"I know... right, and he wasn't even close to the ball." Chase agrees.

"Sometimes you don't see everything on the camera." Charlotte tells them. "The ref could have seen him commit the foul but the camera didn't get it."

"No Way!" Cooper argues. "His hand was nowhere near that ball."

"Because the camera didn't catch it on TV." Charlotte repeats.

"I agree with dad, momma. I watched the game on TV at the hospital. The ref made a bad call."

This is good Charlotte thinks. They may be arguing over basketball but at least they're not crying. They continue to discuss the basketball game as they drive home while Grace-Anne sleeps in her car seat.

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	77. Chapter 77

_**Chapter 77**_

* * *

It's a Thursday evening, Charlotte opens the door to let Alexis in. "Thank you for inviting me." The newly appointed, red-headed Chief of Staff walks in the door.

"It's our pleasure." Charlotte leads her into the living room.

Cooper rises to his feet to give Alexis a hug. "You're a life saver."

"How so?" Alexis returns the hug.

"If it wasn't for you, I don't think my wife would ever retire. She doesn't want her ship to sink. I'm grateful she was able to find a competent captain to take over." Cooper pats Alexis on the back.

"Talk about piling on the pressure." Alexis fakes a cringe.

Chase strolls in the room holding Grace-Anne. Alexis walks over to get a look at the new baby. "Congratulations, she's a beauty."

"Thanks." Chase nods without a smile.

"How are you doing?" She asks him.

Chase raises his eyebrows. "I'll tell you that I'm happy if you want me to."

"I don't want you to lie to me, Chase. I don't expect you to say you're happy. You don't have to answer the question if you don't want to." Alexis steps into her therapist role. Charlotte and Cooper look on and listen.

Chase frowns. "I just hate when people ask me that question. How am I supposed to be doing? My twenty-six year old wife is dead. My daughter will never know her mother. How am I supposed to answer that question without dragging everyone else down with me?"

"People know, Chase. They're just being polite when they ask how you're doing. You don't need to answer."

Chase feels the need to apologize. "I'm sorry if I snapped at you. I'm just sick of people asking me how I'm doing. I should wear a sign saying- Don't ask me...I'm miserable."

Charlotte and Cooper look at each other.

"Hey Alexis, I have a question for you?" Chase asks.

"What?"

"Who do you think the baby looks like?"

Alexis walks over to get a closer look at Grace-Anne. "I don't know what Michelle looked like, but I can see you in the baby's face." Alexis knows why he's asking her.

"Dad,... hand Alexis that picture of Michelle."

Cooper turns around and picks up a framed 8x10 picture of Michelle from off of the piano. He hands it to Alexis.

"Wow, she was a beautiful woman." Alexis studies the picture. "She has the most beautiful eyes and perfect features."

Chase nods. "Everyone told her she would have done well as a super-model."

Alexis nods and studies the picture. She looks back and forth between the photo and the baby. "It's hard to tell because Grace-Ann is a baby but I see a resemblance to Michelle. I also see a resemblance to you. She looks a lot like you around the mouth and chin."

Chase nods. "That's what everyone says."

"I'm going to go check on the chicken." Cooper heads into the kitchen.

"I'll come with you." Charlotte follows him. "Why do you suppose Chase asks everyone that same question?"

"What question?" Cooper cuts into a piece of chicken to see if it's done.

"He asks everyone who they think Grace-Anne looks like."

"I don't know, maybe he wants them to say she looks like Michelle so he has a reminder of her."

"He seems happy whenever someone tells him that Grace-Anne looks like him." Charlotte takes the potatoes out of the oven.

"You think he's worried she's not his baby?" Cooper asks Charlotte.

Charlotte responds, "I don't think Michelle would cheat on Chase but I don't know why he keeps asking everyone who the baby looks like."

Cooper sets out the plates. "That little girl is his whole life now, all he does is stare at her. He probably wants to see if everyone else sees the same thing he sees in her, which is him and Michelle."

"I s'pose." Charlotte pours the wine.

Alexis sits next to Chase on the couch. "Grace-Anne is lucky to have you for a father."

"Did I tell you that Michelle wanted to adopt a baby after we lost the last one?"

"No." Alexis shakes her head. "You didn't mention that."

"Yeah." Chase nods and swallows. "She was scared to get pregnant again. She didn't want to go through losing another baby. I talked her into it. It never occurred to me I could lose Michelle."

"You can't blame yourself, Chase. It's not going to change the outcome. It'll just drag you down and you can't afford that. It's not fair to your daughter. She needs her dad."

"I know you're right but I can't help it. I think about that conversation every night before I go to bed. I remember her saying she wanted to adopt and me convincing her to try again."

"Well…look, you have this perfect baby girl now."

Chase exhales deeply before saying. "And Michelle gave her life to give me a baby."

"All the more reason you need to make sure you give Grace-Anne the best of you. Do it for Michelle."

"Dinner's ready!" Charlotte calls out. Alexis saunters into the kitchen while Chase places Grace-Anne in her bassinet.

Drew walks in the kitchen with Ruby. "What's for dinner, dad?"

Alexis looks over at the blonde teenager. "Oh my goodness! This can't be Drew."

"It sure is." Charlotte looks on, smiling. "Drew, do you remember Alexis?"

Drew stares blankly. He was six-years-old when Alexis left town. "I don't think so."

"It's okay, I wouldn't have recognized you either. You were just a small fry when I left LA."

"Alexis is going to take my place as the new chief of staff at St. Ambrose." Charlotte explains.

"Congratulations." Drew shakes hands her hand before he sits down. "This is my girlfriend, Ruby."

"Wow, you have a girlfriend? How old are you now?" Alexis sits down next to Drew.

"I'm sixteen."

"Time sure does fly." Alexis spoons some broccoli onto her plate.

Chase breezes into the kitchen and sits down between Ruby and Charlotte.

"How's the baby?" Cooper asks.

"She's asleep." Chase reaches for the chicken.

"How's Andie doing? I haven't seen her in years." Alexis asks.

"Andie's has four children." Cooper says, proudly. "And a fifth on the way."

"What?" Chase drops his fork.

"Cooper?" Charlotte looks at him, exasperated.

"I'm sorry, Chase, I forgot you didn't know yet." Cooper swallows and looks at Charlotte.

"Don't worry, Chase." Drew speaks up. "This is the first I'm hearing of it too."

"Me too," Ruby pipes in. "I had no idea. I remember her saying Nicky wanted another one when we all went to the gym but I didn't know she was actually pregnant agaain."

Charlotte sips her ice water then explains. "Andie wanted to wait a while before announcing it."

"Leave it to dad to let the cat out of the bag." Drew grabs a piece of chicken with his fork.

Cooper shakes his head. "I'm sorry, I forgot."

Alexis decides to change the subject. "Thank you so much for considering me to take your place as Chief of Staff."

"I can't think of anyone better suited for the job." Charlotte grins at Alexis.

Alexis brings a forkful of broccoli halfway to her mouth before stopping to ask, "what made you consider me?"

"Noah mentioned he had lunch with you at school. He told me you were training residents in med-surg and I knew you had a background in psychiatry which is a plus. But once Noah told me you were a badass with the residents and they still loved and respected you, I knew you were the woman for the job."

Alexis nods. "I guess I owe Noah a thank you."

Cooper adds. "And this way you're closer to your mother and sister too."

"It worked out perfect." Alexis tells them. "I'm a firm believer that things happen for a reason."

"I can't agree with that." Chase shakes his head. "I can't find a good reason for a lot of things that have happened in my life."

The table gets quiet. They all know what Chase is talking about.

Ruby offers. "Sometimes bad things happen for no good reason. I know about that too."

"What happened to you?" Drew asks Ruby while he eats his chicken.

"You know, Drew, my mum got remarried and dumped me on my father."

"I thought it was your choice to move in with your father?" Drew sips his milk.

"Only because I was the fifth wheel living with my mum and stepdad and their daughter."

"That's too bad." Alexis tells her.

Ruby sighs. "Well, my mum had me when she was very young, her and my dad split up, she was a great mum until and she married my stepdad. I guess she felt she raised me long enough and it was her time to live her life and my dad's turn to raise me."

"That's too bad." Alexis says again. "We all have our crosses to bare. My mother was brutally, sexually assaulted when she was a resident, that's how she became pregnant with me."

The table gets quiet at that bit of information. You could hear a pin drop. Charlotte looks particularly uncomfortable. Cooper takes note and puts his hand over hers.

"I'm sorry," Alexis apologizes. "I didn't mean to make any of you uncomfortable, it's just being a psychiatrist I've learned it's better to talk about the hard things than keep them bottled up. My mother and I have become very comfortable talking about this together. I forget it makes others feel awkward."

"I feel like a schlep for complaining about my life." Ruby tells them. "You've been through much worse than me."

"Don't feel bad, Ruby." Alexis tells her. "I've worked through my mother's assault and how I was a result of it. My mother told me if she could change anything she wouldn't because she wouldn't have had me then. So what I'm saying is things happen for a reason, even bad things. If my mother wasn't assaulted she would have never had me. Do you follow?"

"I do." Ruby nods. "If my mum didn't marry my stepdad, I wouldn't have moved to the U.S. and I wouldn't have met Drew." Ruby shoots Drew a grin.

Drew smiles back at her. "I'm lucky that your mother ditched you for her new husband."

Ruby giggles at Drew's comment before telling Alexis, "ya' know talking to you makes me feel better."

"That's why she's a therapist." Cooper picks up a piece of chicken with a fork.

Chase is quiet. He's lost in his thoughts again. They assume he's thinking about Michelle's death and how Grace-Anne must be the good thing that came out of it but that's not what he's thinking about at all. Alexis bringing up her mother's brutal sexual assault took him back to the time Tess was sexually assaulted at the barn many years ago. He wonders if she ever thinks about it. Tess let it slip out about his momma's own experience with a brutal assault when she was engaged to his dad. He noticed his momma's reaction when Alexis brought up her mother's assault. He noticed his dad grab her hand. His heart breaks now for his momma, he knows she doesn't talk about her assault. She hasn't gotten to the point where Alexis and her mother are. Now he feels bad for his momma and maybe that's what he needs-to worry about someone else.

Alexis decides to change the subject to a happier one. "So, I hear Noah and Marley are getting married in a few months?"

"Yes." Charlotte nods.

"Where are they having the wedding?'

"At the beach." Charlotte answers. "Hopefully, we'll have a nice day."

"They better." Drew adds. "Or we're all getting wet."

"There's a shelter on the property that we can use if it rains." Charlotte tells Drew. "But it'll definitely be better if the sun is shinin'."

"I love weddings." Ruby pipes in. "I can't wait to go dress shopping now that I lost weight."

"Oh,... have you reached your goal weight yet?" Cooper asks the sixteen year old.

"Dad?" Chase furrows his brow. "That's rude."

"No... I mean you look great." Cooper tells Ruby. "I just didn't know...-" Cooper doesn't know how to take his foot out of his mouth.

Charlotte shakes her head at him.

"I hit my goal weight a few weeks ago, according to the charts, although this dinner may tip the scale for me." Ruby chuckles.

"It's going to tip the scale for all of us." Chase smiles at Ruby.

Charlotte and Cooper smile now too. This is the first time they've seen Chase smile in a month.

* * *

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	78. Chapter 78

_**CHAPTER 78**_

* * *

It's 8am on Wednesday, Charlotte strolls in her office at St. Ambrose, coffee in hand. This is her last week of mentoring Alexis. She pushes open her office door to find the red head sitting behind her desk. "How's it feel? Being the boss?" Charlotte grins at her.

"A little scary," Alexis responds, rubbing her hand along Charlotte's desk which has been cleaned out of all essentials.

Charlotte smirks before walking towards Alexis. "You'll get the hang of it. I did."

Alexis looks at the computer. "I hope so. I don't want to disappoint you."

"You won't." Charlotte assures her. "I have confidence in you, now you need to get some."

Alexis swallows and answers with a determined. "I will."

Charlotte looks around the office before saying, "I see you're here bright and early and ready to work. I like that." Charlotte drops her briefcase behind the desk. "Now get out of my chair. I'm still the Chief of Staff until I retire on Friday." She shoots Alexis a grin.

"Having a hard time letting go?" Alexis gets up.

"I've been running this place for over thirty years." Charlotte half teases.

"I'll do my best to keep it running as smooth as you did." Alexis sits down on the office couch. "I wanted to ask you something at dinner the other night but I think I made things uncomfortable enough when I brought up my mother's assault."

Charlotte hesitates, then she tells Alexis. "It happened right over there." She looks to a spot in front of the couch on the floor. "That's where he assaulted me."

Alexis instinctively looks down at the spot on the floor. "You don't talk about it much, do you?"

"No." Charlotte shakes her head. "I can't imagine much good would come over talking about it. It's sort of an unspoken thing between Cooper and I. We've been married so long, we know what each other is thinking without having to talk about it."

"I noticed how Cooper held your hand at dinner when I brought it up. I'm sorry I didn't mean to make things uncomfortable."

"You were fine. You actually helped Ruby and I think even Chase at dinner that night. It's the first time I saw that boy smile since Michelle died."

"Does Chase know about your assault?"

"I never told him but I told Tess and I have a feeling she passed it on."

"Who's Tess?"

"Oh? You have been gone a long time." Charlotte pauses a moment. "Tess was Chase's first love. She was brutally assaulted when they were dating. I talked to Tess about my assault, thinking it would help her and I'm sure she passed that information on to Chase."

"Whatever happened to his great love, Tess?"

"That's a long story."

"I've got the time as long as you have. It might help me to help Chase if I knew more about his life."

Charlotte swallows before she begins. "Well," She licks her lips and thinks. "They started dating when they were sixteen. They were engaged after they finished medical school and then Chase met Michelle."

"He broke up with Tess because of Michelle?" Alexis asks.

Charlotte explains. "More like Tess left town after she caught Chase cheating on her with Michelle. You see, Tess and Chase hit a rough patch. Chase wanted to get married right away and start havin' kids. Tess wanted to establish her career first and put off having kids. They butted heads over it and were arguing at the time Chase met Michelle. Michelle was a beautiful girl and a distraction from his problems with Tess. He cheated, Tess couldn't forgive it and left. It broke Chase's heart. Michelle had also just come out of a serious relationship and they bonded over that. They both wanted to have kids so they decided to get married. They were engaged by the time Tess came back three months later to give Chase a second chance."

"So, Tess came back?"

"Yep." Charlotte nods. "I was the one who broke the news to her that Chase and Michelle were engaged. Tess flew out of my house and we never heard from her again until her mother died two years ago. She came back to town."

"Did Chase see her?"

"He did. They were getting along but that's when Michelle lost the baby at eighteen weeks pregnant. Chase and Michelle went through a bad time and he missed Tess's momma's funeral. I suppose that hurt Tess even more because her momma adored Chase and he didn't even attend her funeral. We haven't heard from Tess since."

"That's a shame."

"Damn shame. I loved that girl."

"How did you feel about Michelle?" Alexis inquires.

"Honest, I wasn't crazy about her at first. I felt that Chase married her to fill a void and she did the same thing but then she grew on me. I grew to love her just like Chase did."

"So, do you think Chase is still in love with this Tess?"

"I honestly don't know." Charlotte shakes her head. "He was when he married Michelle but when Tess came back for her momma's funeral she brought a guy with her. Chase and Tess's boyfriend duked it out right outside my office."

"Sounds like he was still in love with her if he was fighting with her boyfriend."

"I think he was."

"So what changed?" Alexis asks,

"Chase found out that Tess had a baby with this man after she moved away. The kid was already a year old at the funeral which means she had to get pregnant as soon as she moved there. That infuriated Chase because she wasn't willing to have a baby with him yet."

"Maybe it was an accident that she got pregnant."

"Or she did it to spite Chase." Charlotte suggests. "Cooper and I thought the boy might be Chase's. He resembles Chase a bit."

"Is it possible?" Alexis asks.

"I don't know the boy's birthday but it could be possible if she was a few weeks pregnant before she left."

"Did anyone ask her?"

"Chase said the boyfriend told him that he was the boy's father."

"Could the boyfriend be lying?"

Charlotte shrugs. "I don't believe Tess would lie to Chase if she knew he was the father. Tess knew Chase wanted to be a dad, she wouldn't have kept him and his child apart."

"Even if she was a woman scorned?"

"No. Tess isn't capable of that kind of deception. It's not Chase's son."

Charlotte's pager goes off. "They need me in L&D. I'm gonna let you take this one." She hands Alexis her pager. "Call me if you need me."

"Got it." Alexis pulls on her white lab coat and gets to work as the boss.

* * *

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	79. Chapter 79

_**CHAPTER 79**_

* * *

It's Saturday afternoon, Cooper is taking Charlotte out for lunch. She's wearing a bone colored business suit with a burgundy blouse underneath. Chase is riding along in the back seat with Grace-Anne. "I hope you're hungry." Cooper looks over at her.

"Starvin." She gives a little smile. She knows, she doesn't want to let on but she knows exactly where they're goin' and why. Yesterday was officially her last day as Chief of Staff at St. Ambrose and nobody, not one single person made mention of a retirement party or celebration. Plus, he said they were going to Giorgio's on the water. That's where they have all their family celebrations on account of Cooper's mother being the owner and Nicky's band working there. Charlotte and Cooper normally avoid Giorgio's because they've been there so much over the years. They've tried every dish on the menu by now. But it would be awkward and rude to have her retirement party at someone else's restaurant so as soon as he said he wanted to take her out to lunch today at Giorgio's she knew.

They pull up in the parking lot. "Isn't that Violet and Pete walking into the restaurant?"

Cooper sighs. "They're late."

"You didn't say they were joining us for lunch." Charlotte smirks, knowing they're late for her surprise party.

Chase snickers in the back seat.

"I mentioned we were going to lunch and told them to meet us if they wanted." Cooper explains.

"Why did you say they're late? They arrived before us. If they're late we're even later."

Chase snickers again in the back seat. He knows that his momma knows now.

Cooper looks at Charlotte and makes goofy face. "Can you at least act surprised when you walk in the door?"

Charlotte nods. "I can do that."

"When did you know?"

"When you never mentioned celebrating my retirement. I knew you has something up your sleeve."

Cooper parks the car. Charlotte gets out first and tells him. "We better walk slow. Sheldon and Amelia are just getting out of their car too."

"Where?" Cooper takes off his sunglasses.

"Over there." Charlotte gestures.

"Don't worry, momma. We'll take our time getting the stroller out of the trunk and getting Grace in it." Chase opens the trunk.

Charlotte, Cooper and Chase take their time with the stroller, waiting for any other late stragglers to walk in the restaurant. "Okay I don't see anyone else. I think we can go now." Cooper pushes Grace-Anne's stroller. One inside about one-hundred people jump out and yell SURPRISE! Charlotte is truly surprised now at the amount of people Cooper invited. "Is there anyone working at St. Ambrose today?" She whispers to Cooper."

Cooper chuckles. "Alexis is. I invited all the staff and everyone requested the day off to come to your party. She had to start out trying to rearrange schedules and provide coverage for today."

"Good." Charlotte nods and smiles. "It'll be good for her." Charlotte is even more surprised to see Noah and Marley smiling at her. She looks at Cooper with bright wide eyes "Noah and Marley flew in?"

Cooper smiles. "Yeah..unless those two are imposters."

"Thank you, Coop." Charlotte hugs her husband. "I truly am touched by this."

"So, I did get you after all?" He smirks.

"You got me." Charlotte leaves Cooper now to mingle with her guests. Noah and Marley are deep in conversation with Lila and Dylan so Charlotte makes her way to see Andie and Nicky.

"Congrats, momma. You're a free woman now." Andie gets up to hug her momma. "Now you and daddy can take that vacation to Hawaii, you've been talking about."

"Not yet." Charlotte sighs. "I can't leave your brother yet."

"Which one?" Nicky sips a beer, referring to both Chase and Drew.

"Chase, he's grieving and he's got the baby."

"I don't know if you should leave Drew either." Nicky points out Drew sitting in the corner with Ruby. Ruby has on a tight red mini-dress and she's sitting on Drew's lap. His hand's between her knees.

Charlotte looks over at them now. "If her dress was any shorter, I could tell you what color skivvies she has on."

"If she has on any at all." Andie snickers.

"Who took her shopping to buy that dress?" Charlotte asks Andie.

Andie shakes her head. "Don't look at me. She used to go shopping with Michelle. I don't know who she shops with now."

Nicky smirks. I'd say Drew's the one who helped her pick _that_ dress out."

"You don't think they're doing it yet? Do you?" Charlotte asks both Andie and Nicky.

"If a girl wears a dress like that, she's puttin out." Nicky raises his eyebrows.

"Yeah, but that's the first time I've ever seen her in anything like that." Andie watches her younger brother and his girlfriend. "She just wants to show off her body now that she's a hottie."

"Show it off to who?" Nicky laughs. "I bet she's giving Drew his own private show."

Charlotte sighs. "I better go talk to them." Charlotte starts to walk over but she's stopped by Violet who's holding hands with her granddaughter, Clove.

"Welcome to the world of retirement." Violet hugs Charlotte.

"Thank you." Charlotte smiles. "Is that Clove?" She teases. She knows very well who Clove is. "She's growin' like a weed."

"Yeah, she's going to be tall like her father." Violet looks at her granddaughter.

"How are things goin'? How's Dylan a doin' as a daddy?" Charlotte asks.

"He's great with Clove and he and Lila have a nice arrangement as friends."

"I'm happy it's workin' out for y'all."

"How's Chase doing?"

"He's doin' as well as can be expected. Cooper and I are offering as much support as we can."

Marley and Noah interrupt now to congratulate Charlotte. Charlotte hugs them. "I'm so glad you could make it."

Noah kisses his momma on the cheek. "Are you kiddin'? Miss your retirement party? Not in a million years."

"I picked out a wedding dress." Marley tells her. "I can't wait to show you."

Jolie walks up to them. "That reminds me Charlotte. I'm wearing blue to the wedding, whatever dress you pick out it can't be blue."

"I'm aware of the tradition." Charlotte says, politely. After all these years Jolie still manages to get under her skin.

"If you don't mind, I'd like to take my daughter and future son-in-law to meet some new staff that are here."

"Go ahead." Charlotte raises her eyebrows at Drew.

"I'll talk to you later, momma." Noah walks off with Marley and her mother.

Charlotte makes her way over to the corner where Drew was sitting with Ruby but they're gone. She sees Cooper. "Do you know where Drew and Ruby went?"

"No, but the the food is being served. Come have a seat at the head of the table." He takes Charlotte by the hand.

Drew and Ruby walk out to his car, well, really Charlotte's old car that Drew is allowed to drive. He opens the trunk and pulls out their surfboards. Ruby pulls out a beach bag and a tent. "I still don't understand why you brought that tent." Drew tells her as he shuts the trunk.

"So we could get out of the sun and have some privacy."

"Okay." Drew screws up his face. "But we've got our bathing suits on under our clothes. It's not like we need to change in the tent."

"You'll see," is all she tells him as they walk on the beach. "Let's set it up over there behind the dunes." Ruby points out a spot.

After they set up the tent, they take off their clothes, throw them into the tent and surf for about half an hour. "I got some fruit in my beach bag. You want to have some with me?" Ruby asks.

"Sure." Drew follows her out of the water and onto the sand. He has no idea what she has planned for him. She unzips the tents and crawls inside. He follows behind. "Zip it back up," she tells him once he's inside.

"Why?"

"So, we can have some privacy." She takes off her bikini top.

"WoW!" his eyes light up.

"Surprise!" She grabs him into a hug, pressing her lips into his. He kisses back while he runs his hand over her bare breasts.

"Now I know why you wanted to set the tent up behind the dunes."

"Are you happy?" She looks into his eyes.

"I'm more than happy." His heart is beating a mile a minute.

"I can tell." She grins.

"How?" He grins back.

"You cracked a fat in your bathing trunks when I pulled my top off."

"Oh." Drew starts to flush.

"Don't be embarrassed. I'm thrilled I can make you crack a fat."

"You've always been able to make me hard even before you took your top off."

"Flattery will get you everywhere." She kisses him again. They can hear the sound of people walking and talking on the beach. He kisses her mouth then leaves a trail of warm wet kisses up to her ear. "You're so hot. I want you bad." He whispers before sliding his warm tongue behind her ear. Her body's tingling now, she nearly jumps out of her skin at the feeling of his tongue behind her ear.

"Take your bathing trunks off." She instructs him, while giving a swift tug at his wet bathing suit.

"You sure about this?" He asks as he pulls off his bathing suit.

"Positive." She helps him pull them off before pulling off her own bikini bottoms. He looks her over a minute, running his hand over her whole body.

"You're so hot." He lies down next to her. They face each other and kiss while they explore each other's bodies with their fingers.

"It feels nice." She tells him as he touches her.

"It feels really good." He looks at her with wide eyes as she touches his privates. "I mean _REALLY_ good." His body thrums with pleasure. "_SOOOO GOOD."_

_"Uhm..Hmmm." _She smiles and watches his face as she pumps him to make him feel even better.

"Can we…-" He tries to think of a polite word. He was going to say screw but thought that might not sound proper to her. "Can we..-"

"Do the naughty? Yeah." She smiles. "Do you have a franger?"

"What's that?"

"You know... to wear over your doodle."

"Oh, you mean a condom?"

"Uh..Yeah." She continues to pump him.

"Me? No." He answers, sounding disappointed. "I wasn't planning on us doing this today."

"I wanted to surprise you."

"And you did ... Do you think we can just do it anyway?"

"I'm keen." She agrees before rolling onto her back, pulling him on top of her, she opens her legs and wraps them around his hips.

"You sure about this?" He looks in her eyes.

"Yeah." She agrees. "But we have to be quiet so nobody will hear us."

Drew feels around for the right spot while she continues to pump him. He keeps his finger there and glides himself in. He gives a loud grunt. "Shhh! They'll hear us."

"I couldn't help it." He whispers now. "It feels incredible."

"I can't believe we're actually doing this." She revels in the feeling of him inside her.

He wants her to feel as good as him so her kisses down her neck. She moans quietly with delight until his warm breath is on her chest. She feels his warm wet tongue on her now making swirls, she lets out a loud moan. "Shhh!" He looks up and warns her now. "They'll hear you." He realizes he's giving her great pleasure and begins to suck on her chest now. She wants to moan so bad but she can't so instead she starts grinding her hips hard into him as he slides in and out of her. She puts all her moaning energy into her hip motions. He pumps into her harder and faster. "Oh My God!" He tells her. "I'm gonna explode."

"Yes!" She says. "Do it now!"

He lets loose and she does the same. He grunts three more times before letting the rest of his fluid flow into her before lying on top of her and kissing her again. "I love you." He says before lying his head into her neck.

"I love you too, Drew." She rubs his back while he lies on her.

* * *

Back at the party. Charlotte's finished her meal and is looking around. "Have you seen Drew and Ruby?" She asks Chase.

"I think they went out to the beach to surf." He feeds Grace-Anne a bottle.

"With their clothes on?"

"They have their bathing suits on underneath."

"Are they that obsessed with surfing that they have to do it at my retirement party?"

"I guess they figured the restaurant in on the water so they'd take a dip."

Charlotte gets up when she spots Ruby and Drew walking back into the restaurant. They have their clothes on again minus the underwear. She walks over to them. "Where have you been?"

"Our hair's wet, momma. It's obvious we were surfing." Drew tells her.

"At my party?"

"Chillax, momma. We're back now." Drew and Ruby head back to their seats. They missed the meal but the waiter is serving dessert now.

Charlotte watches Ruby walk in her tight red mini dress. She makes a mental note to give Drew a talk tonight.


	80. Chapter 80

_**CHAPTER 80**_

* * *

Drew knocks on the door of Ruby's house. "How ya goin?" She smiles. "Back for more?"

"Yep." He walks in and says. "I brought these this time." He pulls a pack of condoms out of his pocket.

"You went shopping for frangers?"

"It was my momma's idea." He sits on the couch. "Is your dad home?"

"Lucky for us. He's in New York on business."

"Good." Drew starts to kiss Ruby.

"First, tell me why your momma made you go franger shopping. Did you tell her we did the naughty in the tent?"

"No." Drew shakes his head before continuing, "it's like she knew, it's like she was spying on us or maybe she's some kind of psychic. She came in my room the other night and started lecturing me on safe sex. She drilled into me how my sister got pregnant at seventeen even though she gave her the talk and she threatened me that I better not do the same thing."

"It's not any of your mum's business what we do in private." Ruby gripes, annoyed. "And besides, your sister is no worse for the ware. She's married to Nicky and having her fifth baby with him. They're doing very well for themselves."

"I know." Drew nods.

"At least we don't have to worry about my oldies butting their noses in our business. My mum's in Australia and my dad's in New York on his business trip."

"Lucky us." Drew kisses Ruby. She pushes his pack of condoms down onto the floor and kicks them under the couch while he's kissing her.

* * *

Alexis stops by to drop off some papers for Charlotte at the Freedman house. Chase opens the door. Alexis walk in. "These are for your mother."

Chase responds, "she's not home. She took Grace-Anne for a walk in the stroller with my dad. Do you want to come in and wait? They just went walking around the neighborhood. They shouldn't be long."

"Sure." Alexis walks in. "I'm not going to ask you how you're doing this time."

"Thanks."

"Do you ever still think about Tess?" Alexis sits on the couch.

"Whoa. Where did that come from?" Chase sits in the chair near the couch to talk.

"Last week. Your mother was telling me about Tess. So, you went out with her for ten years?"

"This is true." Chase leans back on the couch.

"Your momma made it sound like you and Michelle got married out of convenience, that you both had recently been dumped by the ones you loved and bonded over that?"

Chase raises his eyebrows. "I never knew my momma liked to talk so much. I thought my dad was the one with the loose lips."

"Your momma cares about you and she's worried about you, Chase."

"What does any of this have to do with Tess?"

"I'm just wondering if part of the reason you're having such a hard time grieving over Michelle is because you feel guilty for still loving Tess." Alexis raises her eyebrows.

"And Michelle still loved Benn so that made us even." Chase clasps his hands together. "I did love Michelle and I _do_ feel responsible for pressuring her to get pregnant again because she died because of it but I don't feel guilty for still loving Tess. Michelle and I discussed this many times and _she_ still had feelings for Benn so you're wrong about me feeling guilty for loving Tess."

"So, you admit you still love Tess?"

"I'll never stop loving Tess. She was my life for ten years."

"Would you ever call her? I don't mean now but in another year or two?"

"No." Chase shakes his head. "She's with someone else and they have a child together."

"Maybe they broke up."

"Or." Chase points out. "Maybe they're married and have another kid by now."

"I guess you'll never know unless you call."

Chase shakes his head. "I'm not going to call my ex girlfriend. My wife hasn't even been dead two months yet."

"I didn't say to call _today_, I said call when it's right, maybe in another year or two."

"Why do you want me to call Tess so bad, Alexis?"

"I want you to be happy. Your momma wants you to be happy. Everybody wants you to be happy and if Tess makes you happy... I'm not saying you have to rekindle what you had but maybe you could be friends again. Maybe Tess misses you as much as you've missed her."

Chase sighs. "I'll think about it."

"That's all I can ask." Alexis nods. Charlotte and Cooper walk in the door with Grace-Anne. Alexis gets up to greet them while Chase sits on the couch and thinks about Tess. Truth is, he's been thinking about her a lot today.

* * *

Damien surprises Tess for her birthday with an envelope wrapped in red ribbon. "What's this?" She asks.

"Only way to find out is to open it." He grins.

Tess rips open the envelope. "Two round trip tickets to Paris." Her eyes light up.

"I'm planning to propose there, so be ready for it."

Tess gives him a hug and then a kiss.

"I knew you'd be happy." He pats her on the behind.

"Wait a minute, what about Brayden?" She looks at the tickets. "This is a two week trip."

"I called your dad, he's going to fly out here and pick up Brayden from your grandma's house the day after we leave and fly back with him the day before we come home. It's good for Brayden to spend some time with your dad. He's three now. He should spend time with his grandfather."

"Okay." Tess nods with a slight frown.

"What's wrong?"

"I've never left Brayden for more than a weekend trip away with you. Two weeks is a long time."

"He'll be fine. We need to spend some time alone as a couple, Tess. This trip will be good for us."

"I suppose. I'm just going to miss not seeing my little Bray-Bud for two weeks."

"Don't worry. We're going to have so much fun in Paris together. I'll make you forget all about your little Bray-Bud."

Tess sighs. She knows Damien means well and he's been trying to get closer with Brayden but...she knows he'll never feel the same love for Brayden that she does.

"Look happy, woman" Damien teases her, "I laid out some big bucks for this trip to Paris."

"I am happy." She smiles.

"Happy birthday, baby." Damien hugs her.

* * *

After Drew gets dressed, he looks around for the unopened package of condoms. "Sorry about that." He tells her while he reaches into the couch cushions. "I don't know what I did with them."

"It's okay." She pulls her pants up "We did it the other day without one so it's no big deal if we did it without one again today."

"Ha, ha." Drew laughs. "I can hear my momma's voice lecturing me... _it only takes one time._"

"You worry too much." Ruby snickers.

Drew's still looking around for the box of condoms. "Aren't you worried a little bit?" Drew asks Ruby.

"No. Because my oldies wouldn't be all up my ass about it like yours." Ruby gets down on the floor and pulls the packet of condoms out from under the couch. "Here they are."

"Thanks." Drew goes to grab the packet from her.

Ruby holds her grip on the package. "We might as well keep them at my house since we'll probably have sex here more than at your house."

"This is true." Drew tells her. "You're lucky your parents aren't up your ass like mine are."

Ruby clicks the television on. "What shall we watch on the idiot box tonight?"

Drew leans back on the couch, putting his feet up on the coffee table while Ruby flips the channels.

* * *

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_**A/N- A friendly reminder- I can't answer your questions if you don't have an account or I then I will spoil it for everyone.**_


	81. Chapter 81

_**CHAPTER 81**_

* * *

Two weeks later-

Drew sits on the couch at Ruby's house watching television. She comes out of the bathroom, looking disappointed.

"What's wrong?" He looks up at her.

"No sex for us tonight." She plops down on the couch next to him.

"Why not?"

"I just got my period." She pouts. "It's embarrassing to tell you but it'd be worse if you pulled your doodle out of me and he looked like he just took a blood bath."

Drew grimaces. "Is there really that much blood when a girl gets her period?"

"Some days there's a lot, other days are lighter and we could get away with sex without you getting all bloodied up."

Drew holds his hands up in surrender. "I'm good skipping sex. How long does your period last?"

"A few days."

"I can do that." Drew nods.

Ruby grumps. "I hate having my period."

"Think of it this way." Drew tries to cheer her up. "At least you're not pregnant. We did it twice last month with no condom."

Ruby folds her arms against her chest. "There goes your mum's theory that it only takes one time without protection. We did it two times without a Franger and I'm not pregnant."

"Well," Drew adds. "We did use a condom the other times. We must have used the condom at the right time, which means we got lucky."

"I s'pose." Ruby presses the remote to change the channel.

"Or?" Drew thinks out loud. "There could be something wrong with one of us and we're not able to have kids."

"Bite your tongue." Ruby tells him. "I want to have a bunch of kids one day. Having a family is bloody important to me."

"Why?"

"I'm all alone, Drew. My mum doesn't give a lick about me. My dad's job comes first to him. I'd be better cared for if I lived in a foster home. All I've ever wanted is a family like yours."

Drew reassures Ruby. "You're not alone, you have me."

"For how long, Drew? We're sixteen. Do you really think we're going to stay together forever?"

"I want to." Drew reassures her.

"You say that now but you're sixteen. You could meet a girl you like better than me in college or after you graduate. You can't assume we'll be together forever. Look at Chase, he went out with that girl Tess for ten years. You said everyone thought they'd get married but they broke up, she left town and nobody ever heard from her again."

"You're talking about Chase and Tess but what about Noah and Marley? They've been together forever and they're getting married in a few months."

Ruby replies. "Noah and Marley are best mates."

"But isn't that what it's about, Ruby? You should be best friends with the person you marry. My parents are best friends. It's the people who marry for lust that get divorced because when the lust ends they have nothing to keep them together. You need to be friends with the person you marry for it to work and me and you are best friends."

"We are now, at sixteen." Ruby answers. "But that could change in a few years. I'm scared to lose you, Drew. You have your mum and dad and your sister and brothers, if I lost you I have nobody."

"I promise you're never going to lose me." Drew tells her, sincerely.

Ruby bites her bottom lip while staring at the television, thinking. She knows he can't promise her that, he's sixteen and likely to change his mind eventually... but _a baby._.. A baby would tie him and his family to her forever. They would have a life-long connection then. His family would never turn their back on Drew's baby. She rests her head against his shoulder and watches tv with him tonight.

* * *

Tess and Damien finish touring the Eiffel Tower before hopping aboard a boat to tour the Seine River. Damien wraps his arms around her.

She squeezes him tight against her. "It's a little chilly on the river."

"But beautiful." He lets go of their embrace to look around.

"It is beautiful." She agrees. "Thank you for taking me here."

"I told you I'd keep you busy and make you forget about that little rugrat of yours."

She looks at him, bewildered. "You are kidding about that right? I could never forget my son."

"Of course I'm kidding... Stop being so sensitive." He tells her. "I just ask that you focus on me for these two weeks we have alone in Paris." He kisses her on the top of her head. "Is that too much to ask for?"

She doesn't know how to answer that so she just says "no." She doesn't want to get into an argument with him on the trip but she definitely knows she's not going to forget about her baby boy, not even for two weeks while she's on this trip. As a matter of fact, she calls her father to check on Brayden every time she uses the bathroom because that's the only time Damien isn't hovering over her.

Damien reaches into his pocket and pulls out a small silver box. Tess gently rests her hand over his. "Not tonight." She tells him.

"Not tonight, what?" He smirks.

Tess lets out a long sigh, looking at the small jewlery box in his hand. "I'm not ready, Damien. I'm not saying no. I'm just saying I'm not ready yet."

Damien feigns confusion. "Ready for what?"

Tess sighs again, she knows he's playing with her. "I'm not ready to get married." She hesitates. "Because I have Bray-Bud. I need to think about him. I need to know that you love him as much as you love me."

Damien chuckles. "It's not an engagement ring, Tess. Open it." He hands her the box. "Happy Birthday." He gives her a soft kiss on the cheek.

Tess opens up the small silver box. She looks down at a sterling silver ring with interlocked hearts.

"It's a couple's birthstone ring." He points at the stones on the ring. "This one is your birthstone and that one is mine. I got it for you for your birthday."

Tears come to Tess's eyes. "I love it. Can you put it on me?"

Damien slips the sterling silver band over the ring finger on her right hand. After he slips the ring on he picks up her left hand and presses a kiss onto her ring finger. "We'll save this finger for the real thing."

Tess admires her new ring before asking. "I thought you were going to propose in Paris?"

"I was." He nods. "But this is your birthday present. I was saving the engagement ring for the end of the trip."

Tess looks into his eyes. "Are you mad that I said I'm not ready to get married yet?"

Damien shrugs. "Disappointed is a better word, I'm not mad."

Tess swallows. "I'm sorry, if I didn't have Bray-Bud it would be different, I need to put him first. You'll understand when you have a child of your own one day."

Damien grabs her hand. "You mean when _we _have a child of _our own _one day. It will be our child, together."

"Yes." Tess squeezes his hand. "Thank you for my ring and thank you for taking me to Paris for my birthday. I probably don't deserve you."

"Yes you do." He smiles at her. "And I'll hold onto the engagement ring I bought until you tell me your ready."

Tess grins and asks, excited. "What kind of engagement ring did you get me? Can I see it?"

"Uh-uh, no way, Jose'." Damien laughs. "You're not getting a look at that baby until you tell me you're ready to marry me." He adds. "But I'll tell you that it's a beauty. You're going to love it."

"Oh," Tess protests. "I wanna see it now."

"Not a chance." Damien chuckles. "Not 'til you agree to marry me."

"Okay. If you have to wait for me I guess I have to wait too." She sits down holding hands with Damien enjoying the tour of the Seine River. It's a wonderful sunset on a wonderful night, she smiles to herself.

* * *

_**Back in LA-**_

Chase sits on a bench at the park feeding Grace-Anne a bottle. He watches the other children play, he's torn over feeling like he can't wait until Grace-Anne is old enough to run around so he can play tag with her or race her to the swings but at the same time he thinks that Grace-Anne will be his one and only child so he wants her to stay a baby. He looks down at her suckle on her bottle. One day he's gonna miss this sweet age, he knows. He hears a young voice call out to him. "Hey mister! Hey mister!"

Chase looks up and there's a little boy about three years old on the swing. "Can you push me, sir? My grandpa had to go use the bathroom."

"Uh…sure." Chase gets up and carries Grace-Anne over to the swing to give the little boy a push.

"Thank you, sir" The boy says, politely.

Chase goes to sit back down on the bench. He hears the boy call out for him again. "Wait mister! I want to go higher. Can you push me higher?"

Chase turns around and walks over to the swing again to push the little boy one more time before he sits back down on the bench with Grace-Anne. He watches the young boy and wonders why someone would leave him alone on a swing in the park. Don't they realize he can be kidnapped? An older man walks out of the bathroom and over to the swing. "Push me higher, Grandpa." The boy calls to the old man.

Chase gets up to tell the older gentleman it's not a good idea to leave his grandson unattended at the park, when Chase gets closer he realizes it's Tess's father. Chase decides to sit back down on the bench. He watches Tess's father push the little dark-haired boy on the swing. He fights the urge to go over there and ask if Tess is back in town because this is surely her little boy, the one he met two years ago when her momma died. Tess's father was pretty upset with him for not attending her momma's funeral so he decides to sit on the bench and just watch them. After five more minutes, Tess's dad and the little boy leave. Chase has no idea he was watching his own son.

* * *

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	82. Chapter 82

_**CHAPTER 82**_

* * *

_**One month later**-_

Ruby knocks on the door of the Freedman's house. Drew lets her in. "I was just getting ready to go to your house," he tells her.

"We might as well stay here, we can't do the naughty at my house tonight anyway."

"Why not?"

"For one, my dad came home early so he's home and besides I got my period."

"That's right." Drew nods. "You get it once a month. That's gotta suck."

"It does." She walks over to the infant swing to look at Grace-Anne. "She's so cute. Can I hold her?"

"Go ahead." Drew shrugs. "Chase went to the Laker's game with my dad tonight. My momma's babysitting."

"Why didn't you go to the Lakers game with them?"

"My dad only had two tickets so he took Chase, you know, to get his mind off stuff."

"How's Chase doing?"

"He's doing a little better. He doesn't drift off into space as much as he used to and Grace-Anne keeps him busy. She can smile now so he's always trying different things to see what makes her smile."

"Oh look." Ruby's excited. "She's smiling at me. I think she likes me." Ruby picks Grace-Anne up out of the swing and carries her over to the couch.

"She loves you." Drew watches his infant niece smile at his girlfriend.

"I love her too. She's precious." Ruby gives Grace a sweet kiss on her soft baby head. "Actually all babies are precious. I can't wait to have one some day."

Drew plops down next to them on the couch. "At least we don't have to worry about having one now since you got your period. We skipped using a condom three times this month and twice last month. We should play the lottery, we're _sooo smooth and lucky!" _Drew says in an almost braggy voice while holding his hand up to high-five Ruby.

Ruby laughs and high-fives Drew back with one hand while holding Grace-Anne with the other. "Sorry to burst your bubble but I don't think it's luck, dude, so don't go out and buy any lottery tickets yet."

"What do you mean?" Drew asks.

Ruby shakes a rattle in front of Grace-Anne's face trying to get the infant to grab for it. She talks to Drew. "It's not quite as easy to get pregnant as your mum let on to you, dude. I've been reading up on it on the internet and there's only a few days each month where the egg is able to be fertilized by sperm, so if you're trying to get pregnant you have to do it on those days or it won't happen. Your mum was just trying to scare you with her birth contol talk. You don't need to use condoms the whole month, you just need them when the female is ovulating."

Drew nods his head. "My momma explained all about that to me. Some couples practice the rythym method of birth control; they only have sex on days that the egg isn't fertile but my momma said there's no guarantee it will work because some girls don't ovulate on the same day each month so if you ovulate a few days early or a few days late you could end up pregnant."

Ruby's still shaking the rattle "Wow, you know a lot more about ovulation than most guys."

Drew shrugs. "My momma was a sexologist. She made sure she drilled all the forms of birth control into my head. She doesn't want a repeat of what happened to my sister."

Ruby shakes her head. "I still don't see what the harm was in Andie having a baby at seventeen. Everything turned out okay, you all love Harper to death."

"Yeah." Drew nods.

"Do you think if Andie and Nicky could have a do-over they would still have sex the night she got pregnant with Harper or would they use birth control to change the outcome?"

Drew shakes his head. "I don't know, it's hard to imagine life without Harper. She was born when I was six."

Ruby tells Drew, "it would be terrible if Harper was never born. She's such a sweet girl."

Drew chuckles. "I don't think I would use the word _sweet_ to describe Harper but she's a cute little spitfire, I couldn't imagine my life without her. She's like a little sister to me."

"See," Ruby tells him. "It turned out to be a good thing for Andie to get pregnant and have Harper."

Drew watches Ruby play with Grace-Anne and the rattle. He tells her, "but it's not a good idea to get pregnant at sixteen if you can avoid it. You don't want to go to high school pregnant and you still want to be free and have fun and go to college. You don't want to be tied down to a kid yet if you can avoid it."

"I'm not saying _I _want to." Ruby responds. "I'm just saying Andie did it and everything turned out great."

Drew explains, "my parents helped Andie a lot when Harper was a baby. They're older now and want to enjoy retirement so we have to be more careful with the birth control. I don't want to do to them now what Andie did."

"Okay." Ruby nods. "We'll try not to do _it _without a Franger anymore even though we don't always need to use one."

"We've been lucky so far." Drew takes baby Grace-Anne from Ruby. He tells the baby. "I love you kid but you're not getting a cousin from me and Auntie Ruby for a few more years."

"Yep." Ruby nods, watching them. Drew is definitely not going to be in on her plan to have a baby. He keeps telling her that they'll be together forever but she can't take his word since he's only sixteen and likely to change his mind. She doesn't tell him she poked little holes in the condoms they used last month. She'll have to figure out how to poke bigger holes in them this month without Drew being able to notice. Those tiny pin holes she poked in them last month must not have been big enough. She needs to have his baby... Having his baby is her only chance to be a part of the Freedman family forever.

Charlotte strolls into the room sipping coffee out of a *_Worlds Best Grandma* _mug Harper made for her on Mother's Day. "Hi Ruby, I haven't seen you around much lately."

"Yeah... Drew and I like to hang out at my house but my dad's home tonight."

Charlotte takes another sip of coffee before asking, "if your dad's home, don't you want to spend time with him?"

"Uh...he's got a lady friend over tonight." Ruby tells her.

Charlotte raises her eyebrows. "I see, well, good, that means you kids can help me baby-sit Grace-Anne."

"Love to." Ruby looks over at the dark haired baby girl in Drew's arms.

* * *

Tess and Damien are sitting on the couch watching tv. He puts his beer down before inching closer to Tess for some foreplay on this Friday night. They're completely enthralled in a most passionate kiss when she feels a tap on her knee. "Momma, momma."

Tess nearly jumps out of her skin before she breaks the kiss to look up at her three year old son. "What's up Bray-Bud? Why aren't you in bed?"

"I'm thirsty."

"Okay." Tess gets up off the couch to fetch him something to quench his thirst. She returns handing him half a glass of water. "Make sure you go pee-pee before you go back to sleep, Bray-Bud." Tess gives Brayden a kiss before he runs back into the guest room which is pretty much his room now at Damien's house.

"Now where were we?" Damien puts his arms back around Tess and starts kissing her neck.

They're going at it hot and heavy for almost fifteen minutes, their shirts are pulled up and their pants are down, their hands are everywhere, they're just about ready to have intercourse when Brayden yells out. "Momma! My bed is wet!"

Tess and Damien both gulp and stop what they're doing. Tess takes a quick breath before yelling back to Brayden. "Stay in your room Bray-Bud! I'll be right there to check it out!" She reaches her arms behind her back to fasten her bra before pulling down her shirt and up her pants. Damien pulls his pants up before they both hurry down to Brayden's room. "Oh no." Tess feels the bed. "Didn't you go pee-pee like I asked you to before you went back to sleep?"

"I forgot." Brayden answers.

"He freakin' soaked the bed!" Damien can't contain himself. "He freakin' soaked the bed!"

"It's okay, Damien. I'll wash the sheets." Tess pulls some clean underwear and pajamas out of Brayden's *Thomas The Train* overnight bag. "Here Bray-Bud, go wash up with soap in the bathroom and bring me the wet clothes when you're done."

"Ok, momma." Brayden takes the clean clothes from his momma and runs to the bathroom.

After Brayden leaves the room Damien tells Tess. "It's not okay, the mattress is soaked. It's going to stink like piss, now I have to throw this mattress away and buy a new one."

"No you don't. I have a cleaning solution at home that will take the odor out. I use it all the time." Tess tells him.

Damien rants. "What the hell? Does he wet the bed all the time? He's freakin' three years old, he shouldn't be wetting the bed anymore!"

"Calm down, Damien." Tess warns him.

"That's easy for you to say, he didn't soak your mattress with pee. It's not your house that's going to stick like piss."

"Yes, he has." Tess responds. "I told you I have a cleaning solution at home to get rid of the odor. My grandma's house doesn't smell like pee! Does it?" Tess shouts at Damien.

Brayden runs back into the room. "Here's the wet clothes, momma, I'm all clean and dry and I used soap."

"I'm so proud you cleaned yourself up like momma's big boy." Tess tells Brayden.

"Why are you telling him that?" Damien says to Tess. "Momma's big boys don't wet the bed." Damien looks at Brayden now. "What's wrong with you? You're three years old. You shouldn't be wetting the bed. Do you want us to make you wear diapers again like a baby does?" Damien yells at Brayden. "Huh! Is that what you want boy? Do you want to wear diapers your whole life?"

Brayden starts to cry.

"Now you're gonna _cry_ like a baby too?" Damien admonishes Brayden. "The other kids are gonna laugh at you boy if you don't straighten out."

"Stop Damien! You're upsetting him. He's just a baby." Tess defends her son.

"He's _NOT _a baby, Tess. That's your problem. He's three-years old. You're gonna screw that boy up if you let him go around thinkin' he's still a baby."

"You have no right to say that to me! You don't know anything about three-year olds. Don't tell me how to raise my son until you've succesfully raised one of your own!"

Damien yells back. "He pissed all over my mattress! I have a right to be upset about it. He's three years old and I know he's too old to be doing shit like that! That boy needs to learn."

"I'm his momma. I'll take care of disciplining him, not you!"

"Then stop treating him like he's a baby, Tess. If you treat him like a baby, he's going to act like a baby." Damien rips the wet sheets off the bed.

"I'll do it." Tess pulls the sheets away from Damien. "I said _I_ would wash the sheets! My son wet them so I'll wash them."

Brayden cries louder.

"Would you stop already!" Damien yells at Brayden. "You've caused enough trouble around here tonight!"

"Don't yell at him!" Tess yells at Damien before carrying the sheets to the laundry room. Damien follows her.

He watches Tess throw the sheets in the machine. She's not talking anymore. She's thinking about what to do.

"Well, say something." Damien watches Tess look through the cabinets for laundry detergent.

Tess stays speechless for ten seconds too many, Damien's stomach is starting to churn. He knows he crossed the line, he knows she's really pissed at him. He's disciplined her son; something he's wanted but avoided to do for the longest time. "If you want me to be his father then you have to let me discipline him when needed, babe."

Tess breaks her silence. "He's three, he wet the bed. It was an accident." Tess grumbles. "You scared him and made him cry."

"I'm sorry, Tess. I'm not used to having kids wet my mattress."

Tess responds "Well, you need to get used to having a child around if it's ever going to work out between us."

"Are we okay?" He puts his arms around her. She pulls away from him.

He tells her again, "you baby Brayden too much, Tess. The boy's three years old and still wets the bed."

Tess remains quiet while she pours the laundry detergent into the washer. She thinks to herself, there's no way she's gonna let him turn this around and put the blame on her. She turns quickly on the heel of her foot to tell him, "News flash, Damien, three-year olds wet the bed sometimes, it's normal, get used to it."

Damien retorts, "not at my house. He's wearing diapers when he stays here. He's not stinking up my mattress and house like piss!"

"You know what? He's not staying here anymore and neither am I. I'm taking my son and leaving." Tess walks out of the laundry room.

Damien grabs her by the arm. "You're not going anywhere, babe. We're going to finish this."

"The hell we are!" Tess turns around and yells at him. "I'm leaving!"

"I don't think so." He pulls her across the hall to the bedroom.

"Damien! I said I'm leaving. Brayden's down the hall crying."

"He'll get over it. He's not a baby. He's gotta learn to be a big boy." Damien still has Tess by the arm. He sits on the bed and pulls Tess on top of him.

"I'm not in the mood anymore, Damien."

"I'll get you back in the mood." He sucks on her neck and reaches his hand under her shirt.

"I can't do it while Brayden is down the hall crying." She gives Damien a gentle shove away.

"Ignore him and focus on me for once." Damien unbuttons and unzips his pants.

"Damien, I'm not in the mood."

"Let me make it up to you." He rolls them over quickly so he's on top of her. He shoves down her pants and pulls down her panties.

She tries to push him off but he's a muscular guy, outweighing her by close to one hundred pounds. He's inside her in a flash. He grunts as he pushes in and out of her. She knows he's just as angry at her as she is at him. Some people enjoy angry passionate sex but she can't get into it, not while Brayden is down the hall feeling sad. Damien pulls up her shirt and pulls down a flap of her bra. He bites her breast as he thrusts into her. "Ow!" She calls out.

"Momma? Are you okay?" Brayden runs in the room. Luckily, Damien has the sense to pull the sheet up, covering them.

"Get out of here, Brayden!" Tess yells at her son.

"Are you okay, momma?"

"I'm fine go back to your room. Now!" She yells stern at Brayden so he'll listen. Brayden runs back down the hall.

Damien rolls off Tess.

Tess fixes her bra and pulls her shirt back down. "You're a bastard." She tells him.

"I'm sorry," he tells her. "I was mad because he wet my bed. I shouldn't have done that with you, not like that." Damien rubs his hands over his head.

"You shouldn't have." Tess stands up and pulls her underwear back on.

"Please don't leave Tess. You know I love you. I'll make it up to you, I promise."

"I don't want you to make it up to _me_. I want you to make it up to _my son_."

"Okay, Okay. I'll make it up to Brayden. We'll take him to the zoo tomorrow." Damien dresses himself before calling down the hall to Brayden. "Hey Bray-Bud you can come in our room now!"

Brayden runs in the room and hugs his momma's leg.

"Come here." Damien motions to Brayden to sit on the bed next to him. "I have a surprise for you."

Brayden looks up at Tess.

"It's okay, baby," she tells him.

Brayden walks over to Damien's side of the bed. Damien lifts him up onto the bed and sits him on his lap. "I'm sorry I yelled at you. I'm not used to anyone wetting my bed but I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you, so you know what I'm going to do?"

"What?" Brayden asks, looking Damien in the eyes.

"I'm going to take you and your momma to the zoo tomorrow. We're going to see monkeys and bears and giraffes and maybe even lions and tigers. How does that sound?"

"Yeah!" Brayden asks, "can I feed the monkeys and the gi-waffs?"

"I don't know." Damien chuckles. "We'll have to ask but if the zoo-keepers say it's okay then it's okay with me."

"I can't wait! I wuv monkeys and gi-waffs!" Brayden tells Damien and Tess in an excited voice.

Tess smiles now. "I know you do, Bray-Bud."

Damien adds. "And I'll even splurge and buy you and your momma something at the gift shop, anything you want."

"Yay!" Brayden asks. "Can I get cotton candy too?"

"You sure can." Damien tweaks Brayden on the nose. " And how about a sno-cone? I loved snow cones when I was a kid. Do you?" Damien asks. He bops Brayden up and down on his lap now.

"I wuv snow cones and I wuv you." Brayden wraps his little arms around Damien's neck.

Damien hugs Brayden, patting him on the back. "It's a deal, we need to go to sleep now so we can wake up early to go the zoo tomorrow." Damien places Brayden back down on the floor.

"Yay. Goodnight!" Brayden yells out before he scampers back down the hall.

"Let me settle him in on the couch for the night." Tess tells Damien. "He'll have to sleep on the couch since the mattress is still wet."

"Let him sleep in here with us tonight." Damien suggests.

"Really?" Tess asks, raising her eyebrows.

"Really." Damien shoots Tess a grin.

Tess calls down the hall. "Hey, Bray-Bud. Ya wanna sleep in here with me and Damien tonight?"

"Yeah!" Brayden runs into the room and jumps back onto the bed. Tess pads into the bathroom to change into her pj's. She returns a few minutes later and snuggles up next to Brayden until he falls asleep. Damien snuggles up behind Tess. "Are we okay now?" He whispers in her ear.

She turns over to look at him. "I'm willing to give you another chance but, if you ever yell like that at Brayden again, I'm outta here."

"Got it." He gives her a soft kiss on the cheek before they close their eyes to sleep for the night.

* * *

_**Should Tess give Damien another chance?**_

_**Please leave a review and have a good day or night, whichever fits your situation. = )**_


	83. Chapter 83

_**CHAPTER 83**_

* * *

Charlotte greets Chase at the door, smiling with Grace-Anne. "How was your first day back at work?"

"Great." Chase takes his daughter from Charlotte "I should have went back months ago. You don't know how much good it did me to treat patients all day and think about someone else's problems instead of my own. I don't know why I took such a long leave of absence."

"Because you needed to grieve and you're a good daddy for staying home six months to be with your daughter. I'm sure Grace-Anne appreciated having her daddy home with her all that time."

"Well, she couldn't have her momma. It was the least I could do. How was she today?"

"She was a perfect angel."

"Where's dad?"

"In the kitchen fixin' your favorite dinner. It's almost ready. Go wash up."

Chase hands his six month old daughter back to his momma while he washes up. Charlotte brings Grace-Anne into the kitchen. Ruby and Drew are sitting at the table already. Andie walks in the back door.

"This is a surprise" Cooper looks at his eight month pregnant daughter. "What are you doing here, Andie Candy?"

"I need to ask momma for a favor."

"What is it?" Charlotte helps Cooper set the food out.

"Hope has a doctor's appointment next Friday. The cardiologist wants her to have that second operation soon. Can you come with me?"

"Where's Nicky?"

"Nicky's coming too but you're a doctor. We figured you know what questions to ask and you'll know if Hope is ready for the surgery yet."

"What time is the appoinment?"

"Four pm, next Friday" Andie sits down at the table.

"Just sit right down and make yourself at home." Cooper teases Andie.

Charlotte answers. "I'd love to go with you, Sweet Pea, but Chase went back to work today and I watch Grace-Ann while he works."

"I can watch the baby." Cooper offers. He looks at Andie. "Since I'm not a competent enough doctor to go along to the cardiologist appointment and ask the right questions."

"Sorry, daddy. I didn't mean to insult you but you've been retired longer, momma's more up on things."

Cooper retorts, "I'm a pediatrician. Hope's three years old. Your momma's a sexologist, not a pediatricain."

Charlotte interrupts. "You can't go anyway, Coop, you have a dentist appointment next Friday at three-thirty."

"I can cancel it." Cooper looks at Andie. "Because I'm nice, even though my own daughter insists on insulting me."

"Leave her alone, Coop." Charlotte hands Andie a glass of lemonade. "How have you been feeling, Sweet Pea?"

"I'm good. Just tired." Andie sips her lemonade.

"You don't need to cancel your dentist appointment, Dr. Cooper." Ruby volunteers. "I'm home from school by four pm. I can watch Grace-Anne."

Drew joins in. "But we have surf school on Fridays at four pm."

"You're the shark bait, not me." Ruby chuckles. "I don't need surfing lessons, you go to your lessons while I watch the baby for Chase."

"It's fine with me as long as it's okay with Chase." Charlotte sits at the table.

"Why wouldn't it be okay with Chase?" Andie asks. "Ruby's sixteen. I wasn't much older than her when I had Harper. She can handle taking care of a baby for the afternoon."

Drew looks over at Ruby. She's been in an especially good mood all week. Ruby notices him looking and smiles at him.

Chase walks in the kitchen. He picks Grace Anne up out of her high chair, giving her a kiss on her head.

"I can nurse her while you eat." Ruby tells Chase.

They all stare at Ruby with wide eyes.

"What's wrong?" Ruby looks baffled.

"Nurse her?" Andie raises her eyebrows. "How do you propose to do that?"

"Huh?" Ruby still looks baffled.

Cooper explains. "Ruby means she'll hold her. In Australia when they say _nurse_ the baby they mean to _hold_ the baby."

"How did you know that?" Charlotte asks Cooper.

"I found out when one of my patient's mothers asked me if I would mind nursing her baby while she was looking for her car keys."

They all laugh now.

Chase tells Ruby. "I've been working all day. I don't mind holding Grace while I eat." He looks over at Andie. "What are you doing here?"

"Gee, thanks." Andie rolls her eyes. "Nice greeting from my favorite brother."

"Hey!" Drew complains. "I thought _I_ was your favorite brother."

"Sorry." Chase says to Andie. "I'm just not used to seeing you without your brood. Where is everyone?"

"They're home. Nicky's feeding them dinner tonight."

Charlotte talks now. "Andie came over to ask a favor. She needs me to go with her and Nicky to take Hope to the cardiologist next Friday."

Andie pipes in. "It's important, Chase, or I wouldn't ask. Hope needs more heart surgery and I need momma's expert opinion."

Cooper shakes his head. "Because your good old dad wasn't a pediatrician for twenty five years, he was a quack." He says sarcastically.

"Stop it, Coop." Charlotte shoots Cooper a glare. "I'm not gonna say it again."

"So, who's going to watch Grace-Anne for me? Dad?" Chase asks.

"No." Charlotte answers. "Your dad has a dentist appointment."

Cooper shakes his head again. "Apparently I can't talk for myself anymore either."

Charlotte ignores him. "Ruby volunteered to baby-sit. Is that okay with you?"

Chase looks at Ruby. "Yeah, I trust Ruby with Grace. No problem."

"Great." Ruby smiles. Ruby's in especially good mood today because she's one day late for her period. She hasn't said anything to Drew yet because she _is_ only a day late and it might scare him into insisting they use condoms every single time next month if she isn't pregnant. She's hopeful though. They had sex twice this month without a condom and she snipped the condoms they did use with a scissor. She got around it by opening the package and putting the condoms on for Drew. If he noticed the slits she put in them he didn't let on.

* * *

Damien comes home from work. Brayden runs up to him. "Hi daddy."

Damien picks Brayden up and gives him a high five. Tess looks on. She isn't crazy about the idea of Brayden calling Damien daddy but Damien told Brayden that it was okay. Brayden was so excited about the idea Tess couldn't tell him no."

"I have good news for you." Damien puts Brayden down, telling Tess.

"What's that?"

"I'm going to LA next week for business. My company's contract at Surfside Wellness is coming up. I have to fly out there and try to convince the doctors to renew with our company."

"That means you'll see Chase. Why is this good news?"

Damien answers, "I'm not worried about Chase. He may not like me but all the other doctors there do. I'm confident they'll sign on with us at least another year."

"Why is this good news for me?" Tess asks again.

"Isn't your father's sixtieth birthday next Friday?"

"Yeah." Tess nods.

"Let's surprise him and give him the gift of seeing you and Brayden for his birthday. Come with me to LA and surprise your dad for his birthday."

Tess thinks a minute. "That's a great idea. My dad will be so happy."

"Then let's do it." Damien high fives Tess. "I'll book the tickets now." Damien gets out his Ipad.

* * *

_**Hope y'all have a great morning or night and don't forget to REVIEW =)**_


	84. Chapter 84

_**CHAPTER 84**_

* * *

Charlotte watches with Andie and Nicky as the cardiologist examines Hope. The three year old girl looks just like her daddy, she sits patiently while the doctor listens to her heart with his stethoscope.

"All done." The doc says as he lifts her off of the exam table. Hope runs over the her poppa and climbs into his lap.

"So?" Andie asks the doctor.

"She has a distinct murmer. I suspect her pulmonary valve is leaking. We'll need to do an echo to confirm it but if I'm right she's going to need surgery to repair it." The doctor explains.

"But you said after her first surgery she wouldn't need another surgery until she was older. She's only three."

The doctor explains. "The valve is leaking because her body has grown since the last surgery. The valve procedure we did when she was five months old is no longer sealed because her heart has grown bigger."

"But you said she wouldn't need more surgery until she was at least four." Andie complains.

Charlotte steps in. "Andie the docs can only estimate how much Hope will grow each year. Hope was a tiny baby at five months old. She's grown leaps and bounds since then. She's going to be tall like her poppa. If the valve is leaking she needs it repaired."

"And," the cardiologist adds. "This will not be the last time she'll need surgery. She's three now. Her heart will continue to grow and eventually the repair we do now will leak."

"When will she need another surgery after this one?" Nicky asks.

"I can only estimate." The cardiologist tells him. "But I would say when she's about eight or nine years old."

Charlotte adds. "And she may need another surgery after than."

"So?" Andie asks, exasperated. "She's going to need heart surgery every four years for the rest of her life?"

"No, no." The cardiologist responds. "Once Hope stops growing her heart will stop growing and the valve will not leak anymore."

"When is that?" Nicky asks.

"I'd estimate she'll need her last surgery when she's about sixteen." The cardiologist tells them.

Andie asks. "Hope needs to undergo four more heart surgeries in her life?"

The cardiologist informs her. "There are other valves in her heart that aren't leaking yet but they could also start to leak so...-"

"Oh My God!" Andie exclaims and looks at Nicky.

Charlotte explains. "It's alright, Sweet Pea. The surgeons know what they're doing. They're going to check all her valves when they open her up for this surgery, if any of them look like they need repairing they'll do them all at the same time."

"Then why did he just say that another valve that's not leaking now may be leaking next year?" Andie asks.

Charlotte shoots the cardiologist a look. "Because doctors are trained to give you the worst case scenario." Charlotte looks at the doctor.  
" Some need to work on their bedside manner."

"Dr King," The cardiologist talks to Charlotte. "I'm giving my medical opinion as Hope's cardio-thoracic surgeon."

"We're done here" Charlotte tells Andie and Nicky. "Take Hope out in the hall and wait for me."

Andie and Nicky do as told. After they leave the room, Charlotte looks at the doctor. "What the hell are you doing?"

"I was offering the parents my opinion as an expert in cardiac-thoracic surgery. There are different valves that are capable of leaking after a full Tet repair. The parents need to be aware of this."

"All my daughter needs to know is that the surgeon will fix them all at the same time, not that her child will need heart surgery every other year."

"It's a possibility." The cardiologist shrugs.

"Not a likely one. You're lucky I'm not the Chief of Staff here anymore." Charlotte walks out of the room.

Charlotte walks down the hospital corridor holding hands with Hope. Andie and Nicky walk behind them. "Uncle Chase!" Hope yells and points with her free hand.

Chase walks up to them. "How was your appointment, Hope?"

"Nan was yelling at the doctor." The three year old tells Chase.

"I was not yelling." Charlotte defends. "Nana doesn't yell." Charlotte looks down at Hope.

Andie adds. "You sometimes have a harsh tone, momma."

Charlotte defends. "I do not." She continues to walk with Hope.

Chase laughs. "Whatever you say, momma." He looks at Hope. "Just tell Nana what she wants to hear and you'll be okay, that's what your momma did when she was growing up." Chase snickers.

"Gee, You're in a good mood today." Andie tells her brother.

"I am. It's been a good day. I have to check in on one more patient and then I'm meeting Ruby at the park. She took Grace-Anne there."

"That's right." Nicky picks Hope up into his arms. "It's Friday, Ruby's babysitting."

"I want to go to the park too." Hope tells Nicky.

"The nanny is home with the other kids so how about if daddy takes you, mommy and nan out for ice cream and then we meet Uncle Chase at the park after."

"Yay!" Hope claps her little hands together.

"Good." Andie tells him. "I've had a craving for pistachio ice cream all day."

"You know what that means?" Chase asks.

"What?"

"It means the baby you're carrying around is going to be green." Chase chuckles at himself.

Nicky raises his eyebrows. "You really are in a good mood today, dude."

"You're giddy." Andie looks at her brother. "Are you sure you're not on anything?"

"Nope, I just had a good day at work." Chase walks away. The truth is he's happy because Damien came into his office a little while ago. Damien gave his speech on why Surfside Wellness should renew their contract with his company but Chase voted against it and managed to get Danielle and Lucas to vote against it too. Damien lost the deal and Chase savored the expression on Damien's face when they told him they weren't renewing his contract.

* * *

Ruby sits down at the park next to a pretty blonde woman who's watching her three year old son on the swing.

"Hello." Tess says as Ruby sits next to her.

"How are ya' goin?" Ruby asks.

"I take it you're not from around here by that lovely accent of yours?" Tess greets Ruby.

"I moved here from Australia two years ago. I've lost some of my accent. It used to be a lot stronger" Ruby pulls Grace-Anne out of her stroller and holds her on her lap.

"Well, try not to lose any more of your accent. It's beautiful. I love Australian accents."

"Thank you. You're quite nice." Ruby smiles, baby Grace-Anne smiles back at her.

"She's cute." Tess looks at Grace-Anne. "Is she yours?"

"No. I'm babysitting for her. She's my boyfriend's older brother's baby."

"That's a relief." Tess smiles. "Because you look awfully young to be her momma."

"I'm sixteen but I'm pregnant. I just found out last week and haven't told anyone yet."

"How come?" Tess asks. "Aren't you going to tell your parents?"

"My mum lives in Australia. She's not involved in my life much and my dad's been away on a business my boyfriend's oldies will flip out if I told them."

"Does your boyfriend know?"

"I'm trying to figure out the best way to tell him. I haven't thought of it yet."

"Are you planning to keep the baby?" Tess asks.

"Definitely! I want this baby more than anything."

"But you're so young." Tess looks at Ruby.

"This baby is all I have besides my boyfriend. He says he's going to stay with me forever, now I know he will now because I'm having his baby."

Tess screws up her face. "Is that why you got pregnant?"

Ruby doesn't answer.

Brayden calls Tess from the swing. "I need another push, momma. Push me higher!"

"Excuse me." Tess tells Ruby before she gets up from the bench.

* * *

Chase just finished up with his patient and is walking out of the hospital. He bumps into Benn Golder. Chase stares at him for a good twenty seconds before asking. "What are you doing here?"

"I have a doctor's appointment, not that it's any of your business." Benn answers. "How's the baby?"

"My daughter is none of your business." Chase feels defensive. Benn hasn't asked about Grace-Anne for the past six months, why is he interested now?

"I just asked how the baby's doing. Michelle and I were close friends."

"You were more than friends if I remember right." Chase accuses.

"What's your problem?" Benn furrow his brow. "I asked how Michelle's daughter was doing. What's wrong with that?"

"It depends on why you're asking."

"I told you I was asking because Michelle was a good friend. I should have come by earlier to see the baby and bring her a gift but it was hard for me. It's sort of like if I don't think about it maybe Michelle's still alive. I know that sounds crazy but it's the only way I can cope. Michelle was special to me."

"Michelle was special to me too." Chase responds.

"Obviously, Michelle was your wife."

"Did you and Michelle ever …you know…" Chase doesn't feel that comfortable asking but he needs to know. "Did Michelle cheat on me when I was married to her?"

Benn looks totally surprised. "Not with me and not with anyone else that I know of. Why are you asking me that?"

"Just wondering." Chase responds. "She was close with you and talked to you about things."

"We were good friends. She never cheated on you. She loved you." Benn looks into Chase's eyes when he says it and Chase believes him.

"Thank you." Chase responds, walking away. He has to meet Ruby, his momma and Andie at the park.

* * *

Tess walks back over to the bench where Ruby's sitting with Grace-Anne. "She is a beautiful baby." Tess smiles at Grace-Anne. "I always wanted a little girl."

"So have one." Ruby tells her. "You're still young."

"Yeah." Tess sighs. "But I want to get married first. Here comes my man now." She watches Damien walk over to her, he doesn't look happy. "What's wrong?" She asks him.

"I didn't get the contract at Surfside Wellness."

"You're kidding? They've been using your company for years. Why didn't they renew the contract?"

"Take one guess."

"Chase?"

"Yep, Chase Freedman voted it down and he convinced his buddies to go with a different company because he doesn't like me. You know what this means?" Damien stresses.

"What?"

"It's not good. My boss is gonna be livid that I lost the contract. Surfside wellness has been using our company since they were Oceanside Wellness, now all because of Chase we lost the contract." Damien huffs.

"I know Chase Freedman." Ruby pipes in after overhearing them talk.

Tess looks at Ruby. "How do you know Chase?"

"He's my boyfriend's older brother. This is Chase's daughter." Ruby holds the baby's tiny hand up.

"Oh my!" Tess looks shocked. "Chase and Michelle had a baby girl?"

"Yes." Ruby nods.

"Who cares about Chase and his wife? Let's go!" Damien's starting to get agitated.

Tess ignores him. "So that must mean that you're Drew Freedman's girlfriend?"

"Yep." Ruby nods realizing now that this woman knows the Freedman's. Ruby starts to panic a little. "Please don't tell Drew I'm pregnant. I want to tell him myself and please don't tell Chase or his parents either."

"I don't talk to Chase or any of the Freedman's anymore. I live out of state. I'm here visiting for my father's birthday."

"Oh good." Ruby breathes a sigh of relief. She looks up and sees Chase walking over. "Here comes Chase! Please don't tell him I'm pregnant."

"I won't." Tess reassures her.

Damien turns around. "Well, well, well. Look who it is! The man who's set to ruin my career because he wants my woman but can't have her."

Ruby furrows her brow in confusion.

Tess warns. "Damien, don't start anything with him. Let's just leave."

Damien responds. "You don't understand, Tess, this man just ruined my career because he's jealous that you're mine now."

Ruby's jaw drops in surprise, so this is the woman Tess that she's heard so much about. She stares at Tess, getting a good look. She's going to need to tell Drew all about this later. This is juicy.

"It's one contract, Damien. It's not going to ruin your career." Tess tells him.

Damien raises his voice to Tess. "It's a contract my company's had for over thirty years with Oceanside Wellness _and _then Surfside Wellness. Chase made it personal because of you!"

"Don't talk to her that way." Chase tells Damien. "She had nothing to do with it."

"The hell she didn't!" Damien yells at Chase. "You didn't renew the contract because you're jealous Tess loves me."

"I didn't renew the contract because I don't like you. It has nothing to do with Tess."

"You don't like me because I'm with Tess!" Damien yells at Chase.

"We should go." Tess tells Damien. "We have to be at my father's birthday party soon."

Charlotte walks over with Andie, Nicky and Hope. They're all eating ice cream cones. "Is that Tess?" Andie asks her momma.

"Sure looks like her and it looks like Chase is arguin' with her boyfriend again. The last time they were in LA that guy gave Chase a black eye and a bloody lip."

"He looks like he lifts weights for a living." Nicky tells them.

"He looks like the Hulk." Andie jokes.

"I wouldn't want to mess with him." Nicky says. "But I'll jump in if Chase needs me."

"Nobody's fighting today." Charlotte tells them. "Not while I'm here and not when there are children around."

Andie, Nicky and Charlotte walk up to Chase.

"Andie?" Tess looks surprised, noticing her very pregnant belly. "Congratulations."

"Thanks." Andie rubs her belly. "This is number five."

Nicky picks up Hope. "And this is number four."

"She's a mini you, Nicky." Tess looks at Hope.

"Thank you, so does number three. Number two looks like Andie and you know Harper."

"I know Harper and I remember Charley and Michael Nikolas too. I left after Michael Nikolas's Baptism." Tess reminds.

"That's right." Nicky nods. "It feels like you've been gone longer."

"I'm in town for my father's birthday."

"Harper really misses you." Andie tells Tess. "You took off without saying goodbye to anyone."

"Well, she can thank her Uncle Chase for that." Tess glares at Chase.

Chase shakes his head and sighs. He realizes that Tess has no idea Michelle died and he's not about to tell her now.

"Let's go, Tess." Damien pulls her by the arm.

"Wait. I left my purse on the bench." Tess turns to get it.

"Lets go!" He jerks her arm again.

"Ow! Daminen, that hurt." Tess rubs her arm

"Let go of her arm." Chase tells Damien.

"You don't get to tell me that. She's_ my_ girlfriend." Chase pulls Tess up by her arm off the bench.

Charlotte picks up the purse off the bench and hands it to Tess.

"Thank you." Tess gives a little smile. She's embarrassed of the way Damien is acting.

"Let's get the hell out of here." Damien pulls Tess by the arm again.

"I said let go of her!" Chase threatens.

Andie warns her brother. "Don't mess with him. Do you see the size of his arms muscles?"

"Listen to your sister, bud." Damien smirks at Chase.

Chase screws up his nose. "What are you doing with a guy like him?" He asks Tess.

Damien lets go of Tess's arm and gets in Chase's face. "You want to explain to me what you meant by that."

"Let's just go." Tess tugs on Damien's arm now. "We have to be at my father's house soon."

Brayen jumps off the swing and runs over. "Momma? Daddy? Who are you talking to?" Brayden looks around at Chase, Charlotte and the rest.

"Hi." Hope waves at Brayden. "I'm Hope."

"Hi." Brayden smiles and waves back. "I'm Brayden. Do you wanna play with me?"

Damien tells Brayden, "we don't have time for that, son. We have to go to grandpa's party now." Damien scoops Brayden up in his arms. "Besides you know better than to talk to strangers."

"Then why are you talking to them?" Brayden asks.

"I'm not. We were just leaving to go to grandpa's birthday." Damien looks at Chase again. "You're lucky my son is here. Next time you see me without him you better run." Damien and Tess walk away.

"I don't like the way he treats her." Andie says as she watches Tess and Damien walk to their car.

"It's not our business, Belle."

Charlotte and Chase sit on the bench with Ruby. Chase takes Grace-Anne in his arms now.

"So, that was Tess?" Ruby asks.

"The one and only." Chase nods.

"She told me she was in town for her father's birthday." Ruby informs.

"That's right. Today is his birthday." Chase bounces Grace-Anne on his lap.

"It's a good thing he didn't beat you up." Ruby tells Chase. "He looks strong. I wonder if he beats on Tess?"

"Why would you say that?" Charlotte asks.

"He doesn't treat her very nicely, pulling her by the arm. I would never stay with a dude who treated me like that." Ruby says.

"She probably stays with him because of their son." Chase watches Damien and Tess walk to the car. Damien's still carrying Brayden.

* * *

After Tess buckles Brayden in his car seat she asks Damien. "Why did you call Brayden your son in front of Chase?"

"Chase doesn't want the boy so I called him my son, besides Brayden calls me daddy."

"Because you told him too call you that."

"First you complain that you want me to be a father to Brayden and now that I'm trying and I have the kid call me daddy you complain about that too. What do you want from me. Tess?"

"Nothing." Tess answers. "I'm sorry." Tess doesn't want to get in another fight with him now. It's her dad's birthday and they're on the way to his party so she's not about to ruin it by fighting with Damien. She thinks about his question as they drive away. What does she want from him? She thinks about it, she wants him to be Chase. She wants him to act like Chase and to be a father to Brayden like Chase would have been if he didn't get involved with Michelle. But she knows now that's not going to happen because Damien is no Chase.

* * *

Andie stands near Nicky licking her ice cream cone while he pushes Hope on the swing. "That kid looks like Chase. Don't you think?" She asks Nicky.

"I guess but the other guy was tall with dark hair too." Nicky pushes the swing.

"Yeah...but there was something about the face. He had the same look as Chase."

"I don't know." Nicky shrugs. "If _he is_ Chase's kid. Tess doesn't want Chase to know about it."

"Why would Tess do that to Chase? That's cruel. She knows Chase would be a great dad to their son."

Nicky raises his eyebrows at Andie. "Because she caught Chase in the act of cheating on her. _That_ was cruel. Either way it's not our business."

Andie shrugs. "I can't help it, my brother's a nice guy. He already lost his wife and if Tess is keeping his son away from him I just feel so bad for him."

Nicky shakes his head. "Your brother weaved his own web, Belle. He started the ball rolling by cheating on Tess with Michelle. If he didn't do that Tess wouldn't have left, he wouldn't have married Michelle. Michelle wouldn't have gotten pregnant with Grace and died. Get what I'm saying? By sleeping with Michelle he started a chain reaction that he's paying for now."

"And he's paying dearly." Andie looks over at her brother sitting on the bench with her momma and Ruby.

* * *

_**Have a great day and REVIEW =)**_


	85. Chapter 85

_**A/N-**_ _Some of you have requested for certain things to happen or not to happen. I finished writing this fic months ago. I can't change it; the story is complete. There are 107 chapters. I may add one more chapter at a fan's request for something she wants to happen that wouldn't effect the outcome of the story. I am considering writing a short sequel to follow to give closure to all the storylines. Thanks for reading and a great big thanks to all of you who message me and review. I'm sure I wouldn't be as motivated to write without your feedback. Y'all are the best!_

_**Chapter 85**_

* * *

It's 7:30 am on a gorgeous Sunday morning. The sun is up, the birds are whistling. Charlotte's still asleep, Cooper takes a stroll out to the end of the driveway, coffee in hand, to pick up the morning newspaper. He takes a moment to enjoy the tranquility, listening to the sounds of nature before he notices Ruby's car pulling up the street. He can tell by the look on Ruby's face she didn't want to be seen but it's too late to turn around, Cooper has spotted them. He walks over to check what Ruby's doing here so early on a Sunday morning when he notices his sixteen year old son ducking down in the passenger seat. Ah, Cooper knows exactly what's going on now that he sees Drew's wearing the same clothes he had on yesterday. Cooper approaches the passenger side, knocking on the window. Drew sits back up in his seat, opening the window while looking straight ahead out of the windshield.

"Are you just getting home now?" Cooper asks as if he doesn't know Drew was trying to sneak in the house before anyone woke up.

He gets no answer. Drew stares straight ahead. He's caught, what can he say?

"Where were you kids all night?" Cooper sips his coffee.

"I fell asleep at Ruby's house watching a movie." Drew answers while still staring straight in front of him.

Cooper nods but he's not buying it. "I was sixteen myself once. I told my parents the same lie." He pauses a moment. "I want both of you to come in the house, we're going to have a talk."

Noah rolls his eyes at Ruby as she pulls her car into the driveway now. The teens get out of the car and follow Cooper into the kitchen. They sit at the table while Cooper takes a frying pan out of the cabinet under the stove. "Anyone want pancakes?" He holds up the pan.

"Yes sir." Ruby nods and wonders if Cooper's thinking about clobbering them with the frying pan for staying out all night and lying.

"I'll have chocolate chip pancakes." Drew tells his father.

Cooper places the frying pan on the stove and begins to gather the ingredients while talking. "I'm not going to ask if you're having sex. I'm going to assume you are, you're sixteen, hormonal, and just spent the night together. I'm assuming your father was not at home?"

"No." Ruby shakes her head. "He wasn't home."

"Okay, I need to know that you kids are using protection." Cooper cracks egg into the mixing bowl.

"Condoms." Drew answers quietly. He's sixteen and embarrased to be talking about this with his dad in front of his girlfriend.

"Sometimes." Ruby adds.

Drew shoots her a look, wondering why she had to say that. Now they're in for the lecture of a lifetime.

Cooper turns around and asks Ruby, "what do you mean sometimes?"

Ruby shrugs answering, casually. "There's been a few times when we couldn't find the franger, I mean condom, or didn't have one available."

"Are you on the pill?" Cooper asks.

"Oh no." Ruby shakes her head. "I'm under my father's health insurance. He would know if I was filling a prescription for the pill. It would come in his statement."

Cooper rubs his head. "You could get it from a family planning clinic."

"Oh," is all Ruby says.

"Don't worry, dad," Drew tries to reassure him. "We've been lucky so far."

Cooper emphasizes the words, "SO FAR... but your luck will run out one day."

Ruby looks over at Drew. She should probably let him in on her news soon.

Cooper goes on. "Did you know that Andie got pregnant with Harper when she was seventeen?"

"Uh..yeah." Drew answers. "I live here. I am a part of this family."

"Well, Ruby wasn't around then." Cooper reminds.

"She knows dad, Harper is eleven-years old, Andie's twenty-nine. Ruby can do the math."

Ruby pipes in. "I thought everyone adores Harper."

Charlotte breezes into the kitchen to pour herself a cup of coffee. "Mornin'."

"Mornin' momma."

"Good moning, Dr. King." Ruby smiles.

Cooper continues talking. "We all love Harper…-"

Ruby interrupts. "I don't get how Andie having Harper at seventeen was a bad thing? Everyone seems good with it now."

Charlotte corrects Ruby. "Andie was eighteen and out of high school when Harper was born but she did get pregnant when she was seventeen. Why are we discussin' this?"

Cooper raises his eyebrows up at Charlotte. "I got this."

Charlotte sits down at the table and listens to what Cooper's _got_."

Cooper tells Ruby. "Andie and Nicky are not…for the lack of a better word….normal."

"Cooper!" Charlotte admonishes, and he could tell by the look on her face that she has no clue what this discussion is about.

"Okay." Cooper concedes. "Wrong word choice but what I'm trying to say is _most_ teenage girls who get pregnant aren't still with their baby daddy's long after the birth _and_ if the baby daddy does stick around to be in the child's life it means you're stuck with him for life even if he's a jerk. A baby will bond you to that person for the rest of your life."

"I understand." Ruby nods. What _Cooper_ doesn't know is this is exactly what Ruby wants. Drew and his family are all she has. She'll become part of the family if she has a baby with Drew.

Charlotte sips her coffee. "Why are we having this discussion?"

Cooper explains. "Because there are some people in the room that think it's okay to use condoms sometimes and it's okay to go rambo sometimes." Cooper looks at Drew.

Charlotte stares at Drew now too.

"Chillax, momma, we've been lucky. Ruby's not pregnant."

"Drew, I just talked to you about this. I told you if you're grown up enough to have sex you're grown up enough to know how to use a condom."

Cooper adds, "if you're not responsible enough to use a condom each and every time then we can't let you and Ruby see each other anymore."

Drew screws up his face. "That's crazy, I promise we'll use condoms each and every time for now on."

Ruby abruptly gets up out of her seat. "Hoo Roo." She tells them as she walks towards the backdoor, not making eye contact with any of them.

Drew can tell she's upset. "Wait! I'm coming with you." He follows her out the backdoor. "What's wrong? You look like you're about to cry."

Ruby doesn't answer.

They get in her car. Truth be told, she's sad because Cooper said they wouldn't be able to see each other anymore if they didn't use condoms which means she's out. She can't be that important to Drew's parents if they're willing to dismiss her from their live's for not wearing condoms. It hurts, she feels like an outsider now. "Your dad said we couldn't see each other anymore."

"He said we couldn't see each other if we weren't going to use condoms. Did you have to tell him we only used condoms sometimes? If you didn't say that then…-"

"I said it because I'm up the duff. I didn't want them to be totally shocked when they find out."

"What?" Drew crinkles up his nose. "Up the duff?"

"It means I'm pregnant. I'm already pregnant."

He stares at her blankly while it settles into his brain. "You're pregnant?"

"Yes." She drives.

"When did you find out?"

"I did a test a week ago."

"Why didn't you tell me before? Why didn't you tell me last night or when you did the test?"

She wipes a tear away. "I didn't know how to say it. I didn't know the right words to tell you."

Drew looks at her. "A simple I'm pregnant would have been good, well not good, but you know what I mean."

"Are you mad at me?" She turns to look at him now.

"I'm the _one_ who knocked you up. Is your father going to kill me?"

"I doubt he'll care. I told you I'd get more attention if I lived in a foster home than with my own parents." Ruby pulls the car into the driveway of her father's condo.

"What do we do now?" Drew asks before they get out of the car.

"I wanna keep the baby. Are you in?" She asks him, nervous about his answer. He doesn't need this baby like she does. He has plenty of family already that care about him.

"I don't know what I wanna do." He nods but has a serious, almost scared, look in his eyes.

"I'm definitely keeping it. I've already decided, Drew. Are you in or not?" Ruby waits for an answer.

Drew shrugs. "Would you consider giving it up for adoption?"

"No, this is my baby. I wanna keep it."

Drew swallows hard. "I guess I don't have a choice then."

"It's not that bad, Drew. Think about your sister and Harper. Everyone loves Harper and everyone will love our baby too."

Drew nods. "I know but what about college?"

Ruby comes back with, "your sister still went to college."

"My parents helped her out a lot. if my parents didn't help her she wouldn't be able to do it."

"Don't you think your parents will help us out too?" Ruby asks.

"I guess." Drew shrugs. He doesn't want to do this to his parents. They're older now than when Andie had Harper.

Drew tells Ruby, "you'll be pregnant in high school. It's going to be hell to go to high school pregnant. You know how the people at our school are, they'll gawk at us and gossip."

"I don't care, I'm used to them gawking at me when I was overweight but if it bothers you I'll ask to be tutored at home."

"I think that would be better." Drew agrees.

"When shall we give the news to your oldies?" Ruby asks.

Drew shakes his head. "Not today, that's for sure. What about your parents? When should we tell them?"

Ruby lets out a heavy sigh. "Like I said before, I doubt my father will care and my mum only calls me on my birthday and holidays. I s'pose I'll give her the news then."

"You're lucky." He tells her."You don't have to deal with the wrath of your parents like I have to deal with mine."

"C'mon." She gets out of the car and walks inside with him. He doesn't know but she thinks he's the lucky one.

* * *

No sooner than Tess and Damien walk in the door after their return flight from LAX to Altlanta his phone goes off. "It's my boss, I'll take the call outside." He tells her.

Tess rolls her suitcase to the master bedroom and uses the bathroom before she starts to unpack. Brayden rolls his pint sized suitcase into his room, which is really the guest room. He unzips it and pulls out a coloring set that his grandpa in LA bought for him. He decides to decorate the walls with the colorful markers. After Tess freshens up she heads into the kitchen to make a pot of coffee. She calls out. "Bray-Bud?"

"Yeah, momma?"

"What are you doing?"

"I'm coloring!"

"Okay, momma's gonna fix you some lunch."

"Otay."

Tess pulls the peanut butter and jelly out of the cabinet. Damien comes back in the house. "What did your boss want on a Sunday?" She calls out to Damien.

Damien stalks into the kitchen. "He wants me to go back to Surfside Wellness tomorrow morning with Amy and get that contract signed which means I have to fly back to LA tonight to be there in time for the meeting early tomorrow morning. He already set it up with Dr. Shepard."

"Amelia?"

"Yep, she's the doctor in charge." Damien bangs his hand on the counter. "I can't believe this! I just flew home from LA and now I have to turn around and fly back with Amy Petersen."

Tess spreads the peanut butter on the bread. "Why is Amy going with you?"

Damien shakes his head. "Because she's our number one sales representative and he wants this contract signed. Oceanside Wellness has been a loyal customer of our company for years. He wants them back. He actually told me not to come home until that contract is signed. He wants me and Amy to dazzle them and throw in freebee's which usually works." Damien paces the kitchen. "The only reason they didn't sign the contract is because of Chase. He talked them out of it because he hates me, my only crime is loving you."

"Do you want me to talk to Chase?" Tess spreads the jelly on the bed.

"Absolutely not!"

Tess nods at Damien before calling, "Bray-Bud, Your lunch is ready!"

Brayden runs into the kitchen. "Momma, come see what I drew." Brayden pulls Tess by the arm into his room. Damien follows. There's three stick figures drawn in black marker on the wall with green marker under them representing grass. There's blue marker indicating the sky and of course a sun drawn in yellow marker. It's all done in scribble fashion since Brayden is only three and a half years old.

"Holy Shit!" Damien shouts. "He drew on my wall!"

"It's okay." Tess looks at the box. "They're washable markers. It should wipe off." Tess runs and grabs a soapy sponge while Damien yells. "The kid is fucking destroying my house! First he pees on my mattress and stinks it up now he's drawing on my walls."

Tess comes back in the room. "Get out of here, Damien. I told you I'd clean it."

"This is my house!"

"You need to get out and chill. Now!' She yells at him. Damien leaves slamming the door behind him. Tess scrubs the marker off the wall with the soapy sponge. Tears flow down her face as she scrubs.

"I'm sorry, momma." Brayden hugs her.

She wants to hug him back and tell him it will be okay but she can't because she's not okay. "Bray-Bud, why did you do this? You know you're supposed to draw on paper, not on the wall."

"I wanted to decorate my room." He points to the stick figures. "That's you and me and daddy and that's the grass. You already wiped away the sky."

"I had to, baby. You can't draw on the wall." More tears flow down her face now because her son thinks Damien is his daddy, he deserves better.

"Where did daddy go?"

"He had to cool off. He was a little angry."

"Am I a bad boy?"

Tess feels the waterworks flow. "No, Bray-Bud, you're not a bad boy."

Tess scrubs the wall, thinking about moving back to her grandma's house while Damien is in LA.

* * *

_**Have a great day and don't forget to REVIEW! =)**_


	86. Chapter 86

_**CHAPTER 86**_

* * *

It's Monday morning, Damien is in LA with his co-worker, Amy, trying to convince the doctors at Surfside Wellness to sign the contract to buy their company's medical supplies. Damien listens while Amy does the talking, he passes out free note pads, pens and booklets.

"We'll throw in these coloring-activity books for your pediatric patients. They teach them about their bodies, we have them for every age level from toddler to teens." Damien offers.

"I want to take a look at the book for teens." Lucas jokes around. "Do they have one for sex ed?"

"We do." Amy smiles.

Danielle kicks Lucas under the table. "Behave." She tells him.

Chase looks at the activity books for the pediatric patients since he's the office pediatrician. He's actually impressed. "You said you would throw these in free?" He asks.

"Yes." Amy answers while Damien looks on.

"Have you tried these out on actual kids?" He asks Amy.

"As a matter of fact we did. The kids love them, don't they, Damien?"

Damien just nods, he doesn't want to piss off Chase today. He needs this contract to be signed.

Amy continues. "Damien told me on the plane that his son scribbled all over the walls at home yesterday. If he would have had this book it would be a different story. Wouldn't it Damien?"

Now Damien is forced to talk. "Yes, I plan on bringing one of these books home for Bray-Bud."

"Is that your son's name? Bray-Bud?" Amelia asks. "That's cute."

"It's actually Brayden, we all him Bray-Bud for short. He likes it."

"Aw. I bet you're a good daddy." Danielle tells him.

"I try to be."

Amy pipes in now. "Damien and I are going to step outside while you doctors discuss signing the contract."

After they step outside. Amelia asks "Okay, They convinced me, I'm ready to sign. Who's with me?"

Everyone raises their hand except Chase.

"What's the problem, Chase?" Amelia asks before continuing, "they reduced some prices from what we were paying last year. They threw in all kinds of freebees. How can you turn them down?"

"I don't like them." Chase shrugs.

"Not good enough." Amelia decides and calls them back in the room. "Congratulations, you've got the contract. We'll sign."

"Yes." Damien and Amy high five each other. He looks at Chase, who is the only one in the room frowning. Damien smiles. He feels generous today. He thinks he'll stop by the jewelry store and buy Tess something special on the way home.

* * *

Charlotte and Cooper accompany Andie and Nicky to the hospital for Hope's surgery. As they walk down the corridor to Hope's hospital room, Andie stops walking and holds onto the wall. "What's wrong? Nicky asks.

"I don't know." She holds her eight and a half month pregnant belly. "I don't feel so good."

"Are you having a contraction?" Charlotte asks. "You are due in two weeks."

"I don't know."

Charlotte instructs Nicky. "Take her to the ER. We'll stay with Hope."

"Okay." Nicky hugs Hope before he escorts Andie down the hall. "I love you Hopie Bug."

"Bye, baby. Momma loves you." Andie blows Hope a kiss.

Charlotte and Cooper walk the dark haired three-year old down the hall to her hospital room. Hope walks in the middle holding each one of their hands. "Here we are." Charlotte leads her granddaughter into the room.

The nurse walks in. "Good morning. I have a gown for Hope and then I'll need to start an IV on her."

Charlotte nods and helps Hope into her gown. Cooper explains to the little girl with the shoulder length dark hair that's been cut into a bob, "the IV is going to pinch a little when the nurse puts it in but you can pinch grandpa, okay."

Hope nods with wide eyes. The nurse walks over with the supplies. She wipes Hope's tiny arm with a swab before she inserts the IV. The little brunette closes her eyes tight and bites her lip but she doesn't cry.

"All done." The nurse tells her.

"You did great." Charlotte smiles and hugs her granddaugher. "I'm so proud of you."

"You were the best." Cooper high fives his Hope. "I've never met a three-year old as brave as you and I'm a doctor."

Hope giggles.

"You are too cute!" Cooper tickles her.

"There should be a law against it." Charlotte follows suit tickling the little brunette while she giggles in sheer delight.

* * *

Andie's hooked up to a fetal monitor in the ER.

"You're not having contractions." The doctor tells her.

"Then what was I feeling?"

"Nerves." The doctor answers. "You did say your three year old was having heart surgery today."

"Yes, she is." Nicky responds to the doctor.

The doctor tells Andie. "You're due in two weeks so even if you start having contractions that's fine, you can go to the labor and delivery unit. It's not necessary for you to stay here but if you want to, if it makes you feel better, you can stay."

"I wanna to stay."

"Okay. I'll check on you in a little while." The doctor writes in her chart.

"Belle," Nicky looks at her. "You heard the doctor, you're not having contractions and if you start having them, I can take you to the labor room. Why do you want to stay here?"

"I can't look at Hope before they take her to surgery. I'm so scared." A tear leaks out of her eye.

"Okay, okay." Nicky hugs her.

* * *

The nurse walks in Hope's hospital room. "Okay, it's time." She tells Charlotte and Cooper. "I have to take Hope to the OR."

"I don't wanna go, Nan." Hope reaches her arms out to Charlotte.

"It'll be okay, baby."

"No, Nan. Please come with me, please." Hope holds on to Charlotte's arm tight.

"Okay," Charlotte sighs.

The nurse looks at her. "Family isn't allowed in the OR."

Charlotte uses a firm tone. "Page the chief of staff and tell her Dr. King is going in the OR with her grandbaby. This child is not leaving the room without me."

The nurse picks up the phone to call Alexis.

* * *

Tess is in the bedroom packing when she hears the door open. She hides her suitcase under the bed and walks into the living room. "You're home early." She greets Damien. "I wasn't expecting you home until tonight."

Damien has a huge smile on his face. "This has been an amazing day. The kind of day where everything goes right."

"I guess that means you got the contract with Surfside Wellness?"

"We did." He picks her up and spins her around, smiling. "And my boss called, he's giving both me and Amy a bonus for getting Surfside to sign." He puts Tess back down on her feet.

"That's awesome." She tells him. "I'm surprised Chase agreed to it."

"Oh, he didn't." Damien grins. "Chase had the biggest puss on his face but there was nothing he could do about it. All his co-workers voted for us. He was the only hold out so they signed."

Tess forces a smile. She's not happy to hear that little tid-bit about Chase being upset.

"Then," Damien continues to talk. "Amy and I were able to hop on an early flight out of there. It worked out perfect. They had standby-seats available on the next direct flight leaving. We didn't even wait a half hour to board."

"That's great." Tess nods.

"Oh, and I stopped at the jewelry store on the way home and picked up something for you. He hands her a long gold box. She opens it and pulls out a diamond bracelet.

"It's gorgeous." She admires it.

"Here, let me put it on you." He clasps the bracelet onto her wrist. "I got something for Bray-Bud too."

"What is it?"

He pulls a brown Atlanta Braves Pillow Pet out of the bag. The brown bear's wearing a red Atlanta Braves jersey with a little blue baseball cap.

"Oh my goodness. How adorable?" Tess holds the pillow pet. "Brayden is going to be so happy when you give it to him."

"I saw it in the airport gift shop and I thought he might like it."

"He's going to love it." Tess gives Damien a hug and wet kiss now.

Damien breaks the kiss to ask. "Where is the little guy?"

"He's still at pre-school."

"Oh, I was going to take the two of you out for lunch since I'm home early."

"How about we skip lunch." Tess tells him. "How about a little afternoon loving since Bray-Bud's not here."

"I'm sold." Damien picks Tess up and carries her to their bed.

* * *

After school, Ruby knocks on the door at the Freedman house. Chase answers it.

"Come in." He tells her and walks off into the kitchen without saying another word.

"What's his problem?" Ruby asks, her eyes are red, she's obviously been crying.

"I don't know." Drew shrugs. "He came home early from work in one hell of a mood today. Someone pissed him off."

"I thought maybe you told him I was pregnant and that's why he answered the door so rudely to me."

"No, no." Drew reassures her. '"I didn't tell anyone yet."

Ruby walks in. "I did. I made the mistake of telling my dad I was pregnant."

"What did he say?"

"He wants to send me back to Australia to live with my mum."

"Oh no." Drew swallows. "I don't want you to go to Australia."

"Neither do I but he says that he can't keep a proper eye on me here in LA because of his job."

"Isn't it a little late for him to worry about keeping an eye on you? You're already pregnant." Drew grabs Ruby's hand and walks her over to the couch.

"He doesn't want to be responsible for a baby because he travels so much and since I'm sixteen he says he would be responsible for my baby."

"What are you going to do?"

"I'm not going to go back to live with my mum, that's for sure. I'll run away first. Do you want to come with me?"

"Where will we go?"

"I don't know, maybe Florida." Ruby suggests. "My dad used to live there so I know my way around a little bit."

"What about money?"

"I have a cash card. I can withdraw five-hundred dollars before he knows about it."

"We're not going to last long on five hundred dollars, Rub."

"We can get jobs."

"I don't know." Drew shakes his head. "I don't think running away is a good idea."

"What do you suggest?"

"You can live here. If I tell my parents that you're pregnant and you don't want to move back to Australia with your mom, they'll let you stay here. We have plenty of room."

"Are you sure they'll say yes?" There is nothing Ruby would love more than to live with Drew and his family.

"Yes." Drew nods. "But I can't tell them today because they're at the hospital with Hope. She's having heart surgery. I'll tell them tomorrow."

"So, I can call my dad and tell him that I can stay here so he doesn't make arrangements to send me back to my mum?"

"Yeah." Drew nods.

Ruby picks up her phone to call her dad.

* * *

**_Have a great day y'all and don't forget to REVIEW! =)_**


	87. Chapter 87

_**CHAPTER 87**_

* * *

Charlotte volunteered to stay at the hospital overnight after Hope's surgery. Andie's eight and a half months pregnant and the hospital cots are uncomfortable so everyone agreed she would be better off at home in her bed. Nicky stayed home with her being that she is less than two weeks away from her due date. Cooper walks down the quiet corridor to Hope's room. The little brunette is lying awake in the bed. She looks at Cooper with wide green eyes "Shhh! Nan is asleep." The three year old points to Charlotte who's asleep in the bedside chair.

"How are you?" Cooper quietly steps up to Hope's hospital bed.

"Good." The three year old answers in a hushed voice which breaks Cooper's heart.

"You're the bravest little girl I know." It's hard to believe she just underwent heart surgery twenty-four hours ago. Cooper and Charlotte love all their grandchildren but this little girl is special to them. Whenever Cooper looks at the vague scar above her lip from her cleft palate repair he's reminded of how sick she was as a baby. "I brought you something." Cooper pulls out a small gift bag from behind his back.

"What is it?" Her green eyes light up.

"Open it." He hands it to her. Her tiny three year old hands rip through the tissue paper and pull out a brown teddy bear.

"His name is Boo-Boo Bear." Cooper tells her. "He has a lot of boo-boo's on him that you have to fix up. There's a little doctor's bag in there." Cooper pulls a little plastic kit out of the gift bag with fake bandages and a stethoscope.

Right away, Hope pulls up the bears t-shit to reveal a bandage on his chest. "Look he has a boo-boo like me, grandpa."

"I know." Cooper nods. "I'm going to show you how to change Boo-Boo-Bears bandage before the nurse comes in to change yours. Okay?"

"Will it hurt?"

"Are you asking about you or Boo-Boo?"

"Uhm…me." She answers with big green eyes.

"Not if you have one of these while the nurse changes it." Cooper pulls a bag of lollipops out of the gift bag.

"Can I have one now?" Her eyes light up.

It's early and normally Cooper wouldn't allow any of his grandkids to have candy before 10 am but there's something about the look in her eyes that he can't refuse. "Of course you can."

The little brunette sticks her hand in the bag and pulls out a purple one. Cooper sticks his hand in the bag and pulls out a red one. "I think I'll have one too."

Charlotte wakes up to the sound of their hushed voices. It's still early – barely six o'clock. She yawns, stretches and lifts herself up on her bedside cot to check on her granddaughter. "Cooper." She admonishes. "Lollipops at 6am?"

Cooper lets out an overly-dramatic sigh. "Yes, Nan lollipops at 6am. Want one?" He tosses her a red one earning him a giggle from the little brunette.

"Dear Lord," Charlotte laughs now too. "I s'pose it's okay but only for today cuz you had surgery yesterday." Charlotte warns the three year old. "We're not making a habit of candy in the morning."

The little girl keeps smiling, and replies, "otay, Nan."

Charlotte addresses Cooper now. "Mornin'," she greets. "About how long have you been here?"

"Fifteen minutes" he tells her, offering up both a smile and an explanation: "It's lonely at home without you."

Charlotte looks totally perplexed. "You've got Chase, Drew and Grace-Anne in the house."

"But I didn't have you."

She can't help it, a grin spreads across her face. "Did you set your alarm clock to get here this early? The doctors haven't even made their rounds yet."

"I don't need an alarm clock. I wake up with the sun." He smirks. This is true Charlotte knows. Cooper has always been an early riser but since they've been retired he's up even earlier which perplexes her since they don't _have_ to wake up with the sun anymore.

"Okay," Charlotte looks at Hope. "Since we're all up for the day we need to get your teeth and hair brushed and face washed before the doctors come in for their rounds."

"I'll take care of it." Cooper tells Charlotte. "You stayed with her all night. Go home and shower, refresh. I got it from here."

"You okay with that?" Charlotte asks Hope.

"Yeah, me and grandpa is gonna change Boo-Boo Bear's bandage."

Charlotte looks at the little bear Hope's holding and smiles. She gives Hope and Cooper each a kiss on the cheek before she heads home.

* * *

Ruby calls Drew after she wakes up. "Did you talk to your oldies yet?"

Drew pours milk in his cereal. "No. They weren't here when I woke up. My dad left me a note, he went up to the hospital to see my momma and Hope. I'll tell them when I come home from school."

"Are you sure they'll say it's okay?"

"Yeah. The baby will be their grandchild, they wouldn't want it to be all the way in Australia. They'll never get to see it then."

"Are you sure because they already have a lot of grandchildren? And Andie's having another baby soon."

"Don't worry, they'll want our baby too." Drew spoons some Fruit Loops in his mouth.

"Okay, because I already told my dad your oldies said me and the baby could live with them."

"What did he say?"

"He said it was okay with him as long as it was okay with them. He wants to talk to them about it first though. He said he would give them money to support me and half the money to support the baby." Ruby explains.

"That's nice of him."

"He's going to call them today about meeting over tea to discuss it."

"Tell him not to call today." Drew warns. "I haven't said anything to them yet. Tell him my niece just had surgery and it's not a good time to talk to them. Tell him to call them in a few days."

"He left for work already. I'll text him now." Ruby hangs up.

* * *

Charlotte's walking through the hospital corridor. Her phone buzzes. She's surprised to see Trey Walker's name on the caller ID. What could Ruby's father be calling her about so early in the morning? "Hello?"

"Dr King. I didn't wake you? Did I?"

"Actually, no." Charlotte answers. "My granddaughter's in the hospital. I stayed with her overnight and was just on my way home."

"Okay then, today probably isn't a good day to meet."

"What did you want to meet about?" Charlotte asks.

"I told Ruby I wanted to meet with you and your husband over tea to discuss things. Ruby and Drew should be there when we meet too."

"Okay." Charlotte nods as she speaks into the phone. "My husband and I had a talk with them the other day but it couldn't hurt to all sit down together." Charlotte thinks he's talking about the kids having sex, birth control methods, etc.

"So, after the new baby, how many children will you have?" Trey asks.

"The new baby will be our sixth grandchild." Charlotte tells him, referring to Andie's baby that's due in less than two weeks. She figures Ruby told him that Andie was due soon.

"Ruby tells me you're an excellent grandmother." Trey says into the phone.

"I try."

"When would you like to meet?" Trey asks.

"How about tomorrow over dinner?"

"Sounds good. Name the time and place."

"Why don't you come over to our house? 6pm?"

"I'll be there. See you then." Trey hangs up.

Charlotte's hangs up her phone. She's walking down the corridor towards Alexis office. She wants to thank her for allowing her in the OR during Hope's surgery when she sees Chase walk in. "Oh well." She decides to turn around. When she called home last night Drew told her Chase 'had something up his butt all day.' He needs to talk to Alexis more than she does.

"What can I do for you, Chase?" Alexis looks up from the paper work on her desk. Chase has the most unhappiest look on his face.

"Is this personal or work related?" She asks him.

"Both but it has nothing to do with St. Ambrose."

Alexis places her pen down. "What does it have to do with?"

"Work, Surfside Wellness, Tess."

"Talk to me." Alexis swivels in her chair.

"I saw Tess and her boyfriend in the park last week. She was here for her father's birthday, Damien was here for work. He's a salesman for the medical supply company that we use at Surfside wellness."

"So, you ran into him at work and the park?"

"Yeah." Chases nods and explains. "We turned down his company's contract, he was mad when I saw him at the park. We nearly had a brawl but worst of all was the way he treated Tess."

"How did he treat her?"

"She was talking to my family. My mother and sister were there. He didn't want any part of it. He grabbed her by the arm and tried to pull her away. She told him to let go but he continued to jerk her arm so I got involved. I told him to let go of her."

"And?"

"He told me I didn't have the right to say that because Tess was his woman now. I wanted to knock his head off his shoulders, I would have if there weren't kids around. Then his son comes running over. Damien tells me the only reason he isn't going to wipe the floor with me is because of his son. Ugh,.. I hate this guy."

"Because he's the father of Tess's son and you wish you were?"

"I don't know how she could have left town and had a baby with a guy like that?"

"She was hurt because you cheated on her, she probably wasn't thinking straight." Alexis responds.

Chase grunts and clenches his fists. "I screwed things up."

"Do you want her back? Michelle has been gone seven months now. Are you thinking about Tess again?"

"It doesn't matter, she's with Damien. They have a kid."

"Why don't you call her to talk…as friends?" Alexis suggests. "Build up a friendship with her again and see how she really feels about Damien. It sounds like he was a rebound relationship for Tess like Michelle was for you."

"It doesn't matter." Chases sighs. "They have a son. She's tied to Damien for life."

"Just think about calling her Chase. You don't have to do it today or even tomorrow but you need to have a conversation with Tess. You left a lot unresolved, you never discussed why you cheated on her. You never explained to her that you married Michelle to fill the empty void when she left. Tess needs to know that and you need closure. You'll never get over Tess until you tell her these things and hear her response."

Chase looks up at Alexis. She has a point, he thinks.

Alexis continues. "And Tess owes you an explanation for doing the things she did. She needs to explain why she left town without at least talking to you about the cheating. She needs to explain why she wanted to put her career first and put off having a baby with you but once she moved to Georgia she had a baby right away with Damien. Promise me you'll call her."

Chase looks up at Alexis. "I'll call her. I promise."

* * *

**REVIEW and have a lovely day or night whichever fits for you =)**

* * *

**A/N-** To Filipino Writer: _Andie was very upset over Hope's surgery, so much so that she made herself feel sick. The doctor picked up on this because there were no signs of contractions on the fetal monitor. The doctor told Andie it was nerves over her three-year-old having to undergo heart surgery. She wasn't faking it, some people get stressed out enough that they make themselves sick. That's what happened, sorry if I didn't make that clear but yes, Andie had stomach pains over Hope needing heart surgery. Thanks for reading/reviewing =)_


	88. Chapter 88

_**CHAPTER 88**_

* * *

Ruby and Drew are doing their homework while babysitting for Grace-Anne. Ruby looks over at Grace. "Do you want a boy or a girl?" Ruby asks Drew.

Drew doesn't look up from his homework. "A boy would be cool, I guess. I can teach him to play basketball and skateboard with me."

"I guess." Ruby shrugs. "But I hope the first one is a girl."

He furrows his brow. "The first one?"

"I want a family like you grew up in...I want four."

Grace-Anne starts to fuss in her swing. Ruby walks over to the baby. "Let's take a break from homework and take her outside for a walk in her stroller."

Drew closes his book. "You won't get an argument from me. Let's go." He picks Grace up out of the swing.

"When are you going to tell your oldies I'm up the duff?"

"I was going to tell them after school but they're still up at the hospital visiting Hope." Drew and Ruby walk out the door with Grace.

"You have to tell them tonight because my dad wants to talk to them about me moving in here."

"They'll be home tonight." Drew unfolds the stroller. "My momma called and asked what we want to eat for dinner so I know she's planning on cooking for us tonight. She must feel guilty for spending so much time up at the hospital with Hope. I've hardly seen my parents the past few days."

"What did you tell her to cook? I'm so hungry I could eat a horse. I think it's cuz I gave up smoking."

"I said to make spaghetti and meatballs since you like that."

"Okay." Ruby walks along with Drew and the stroller.

"You up for walking all the way to the park?" Drew asks. "My momma said just to make sure we're home for dinner by six."

"I'm fine walking to the park. I can use the exercise since I've given up smoking." Ruby agrees.

* * *

Charlotte comes home with Cooper carrying a bag of groceries. She washes her hands. "I wonder where Drew and Ruby took Grace?"

Cooper nudges Charlotte's hands under the water while soaping up his own. "I don't know but it's good for them to watch Grace, this way they won't want a baby of their own and be more inclined to use condoms."

"I don't know about that." Charlotte dries her hands with the hand towel. "Grace-Anne is a sweet baby and Ruby adores her. I'm worried Grace may have the opposite effect on her." She hands Cooper the towel.

Cooper dries his hands. "That's why it's good we're meeting with her father tonight. Hopefully, he'll agree to put her on birth control pills so we don't have to worry about them only using a condom only _sometimes_."

Charlotte rolls the meat in between her palms into little balls. "I was surprised he called me about it yesterday."

"At least he's showing an interest in his daughter." Cooper prepares the sauce. "The way Ruby talks you'd think she was an orphan."

"Well, the girl is on her own a lot."

Cooper agrees. "She's here all the time and when she's not here, Drew's with her at her father's condo."

Charlotte puts the tray of meatballs in the oven and sets the timer. "She's a nice girl and I'm happy Drew found a good friend. I was starting to worry about him before he met her."

Cooper stirs the sauce. "That's because Sarah started going out with that wise-guy Kyle and forgot about Drew."

Charlotte cuts up tomatoes for the salad. "I always warned the kids not to put all their eggs in one basket."

"Now Drew's got all his eggs in Ruby's basket. He doesn't have any other friends that he invites over." Cooper sets the plates out on the table.

Charlotte tosses the salad. "That's because he's stuck to Ruby like glue."

Cooper places the silverware on the table. "Maybe it isn't such a good idea that Ruby and Drew are so close. Maybe if they didn't see each other so much they would make other friends."

"Who knows?" Charlotte spreads garlic and butter on a loaf of Italian bread. "Maybe that's what her father wants to talk to us about; he wants them to take a break and that's why he asked that they be here for the meeting."

The doorbell rings. Charlotte looks at her watch, it's 5:45. She sticks the garlic bread in the oven and answers the door.

"Sorry, I'm a little early." Trey Walker apologizes.

"That's fine. Dinner will be ready soon." She lets Trey in the door.

Cooper greets Trey with a handshake. "Nice to meet you again."

Trey shakes his hand and looks around. "Where are the kids?"

"They must have taken Grace-Anne for a walk. Grace-Anne and her stroller are MIA." Cooper tells.

"It's good they're getting some practice, this way they won't be shell shocked in a few months." Trey chuckles.

Cooper makes a bizarre face and looks at Charlotte. What was that comment supposed to mean?

"Sit down. Can I get you a drink?" Cooper asks.

"A beer is fine." Trey sits on the couch.

Charlotte sits across from him.

"Thank you for everything you've done for Ruby. I'm on the road a lot. I wish I could spend more time with her but unfortunately my job requires a lot of travel."

Cooper comes back in and hands Trey a beer. Trey tells Cooper, "it's real kind of you to let Ruby move in with your family."

"Come again?" Cooper sits down in the chair.

Trey talks. "It was a relief when Ruby told me you offered to let her stay here. I was going to have to send her back to live in Australia with her mum which I didn't really want to do."

"Why?" Cooper asks.

"Well." Trey sighs. "Ruby and her mother have had a strained relationship since Ruby's mum got remarried. That's why she moved here to live with me in the first place."

"Ruby told us that. I'm wondering why you would send her back to her mother in Australia?" Cooper asks.

"Like I said, I travel for work more than I'm home. Ruby's sixteen so it's fine to leave her home but I'm not so keen about leaving her alone with a newborn. If something happened to the baby under Ruby's care I would be liable for leaving them alone since Ruby's a minor plus Ruby's going to need a lot more help than I can give her with a new baby if I'm on the road."

Charlotte and Cooper both look like they've seen a ghost. Cooper's about to ask 'what baby?' before the front door opens. Ruby and Drew walk in with Grace-Anne. "Dad, what are you doing here?" Ruby's eyes nearly pop out of her sockets.

"I told you I wanted to meet with the Freedman's and discuss you're moving in with them." Trey looks at Charlotte and Cooper now. "I don't know if Ruby told you but I plan to pay you to support Ruby fully and I'll split the cost of supporting the baby with you."

Charlotte nods her head slowly at him. Cooper stares with wide eyes at Drew. "Would you like to tell us something, son?"

Drew's white as a ghost, his heart feels like it's going to beat out of his chest. "Uhhh…" is all he manages to get out.

The timer goes off in the kitchen. "Dinner's ready." Charlotte announces. They all follow Charlotte into the kitchen. Ruby places Grace-Anne in her highchair. "You're bloody good with her." Trey tells Ruby.

"Thanks." Ruby answers, quietly before sitting at the table.

Trey continues to drink his beer and talk business as Charlotte and Cooper pull the food out of the oven. Charlotte mixes the meatballs into the sauce while Cooper cuts the garlic bread. Drew and Ruby stare at each other. They both look scared, like they're sharing dinner with a bunch of hungry bears tonight.

"So," Trey continues. "I know how much it costs to support Ruby a month but I don't know how much it is to support a baby these days. I figured you'd know better since you have young grandchildren. I'll trust you to give me a fair figure."

"We'll figure it out after dinner." Cooper mutters before he sits down at the table now and shoots Drew a look.

"Thanks for letting Ruby move in." Drew says. His face is bright red now.

Charlotte carries the pot of spaghetti and meatballs to the table. She takes a deep breath and lets it out before asking Ruby. "When exactly were you planning to move in? We'll need to get a room ready for you."

Both Drew and Ruby breathe a sigh of relief. Drew knows he has some explaining to do with his momma later but for now she's going along with it.

"Uhm.." Ruby answers. "I guess I don't need to move in until the baby's born."

Cooper nods. "We'll have to prepare a nursery for the baby too."

Charlotte glares at Drew. "To be clear, you and Ruby will be stayin' in separate bedrooms. Ruby can stay in Andie's old room and the baby can share the nursery with Grace-Anne _if_ Chase and Grace-Anne are still living here by the time your baby is born."

"Thank you, ma'am." Ruby twirls her spaghetti on her fork.

"Well, aside from the money it looks like everything else is settled." Trey tastes his spaghetti. "Thank you for being so kind to my daughter. She's had it rough, not having her own mum to support her at this time. She's lucky to have your family in her life."

Charlotte nods. Now she feels a little bit guilty for the thoughts she was just thinking about his daughter.

Cooper feels a little guilty too. Maybe now they won't be so hard on Ruby when they talk to the kids alone tonight after Trey leaves but Drew is going to hear it.

Chase walks in the kitchen now. He kisses Grace-Anne hello and sits down at the table to eat. Charlotte introduces him to Trey. "Chase, this is Ruby's father, Trey Walker."

"Nice to meet you."

"I bet you were surprised to find out you're going to be an Uncle again." Trey mentions to Chase.

"Huh?" Chase furrows his brow. Andie is due in a few weeks but why would Trey say something like that?

Charlotte clears things up. "Ruby's pregnant. She's going to be moving into Andie's old room. I figure Drew and Ruby's baby could share a room with Grace-Anne if that's okay with you."

"Uh…That's fine." Chase's is surprised. He looks over at Drew. "I see you decided to follow in Andie's footsteps and not mine."

"I don't follow." Trey sips his beer, looking at Chase.

Charlotte answers for Chase. "Our oldest daughter, Andie, got pregnant when she was seventeen."

"How did that work out?" Trey asks.

"Great!" Ruby's excited to tell her dad. "Andie married the baby's father. They're very happy and they're expecting their fifth baby in less than two weeks."

"That is good news." Trey tells Ruby. "It's nice to hear about these difficult situations having a happy ending."

Charlotte informs them. "It wasn't always a walk in the park for Andie and Nicky."

"That's right." It's as if Cooper is reading Charlotte's mind. "Their fourth child Hope was born with a severe heart defect _and_ a cleft lip and palate. She was very sick after she was born and as a matter of fact she just underwent her second heart surgery."

Chase chimes in. "I remember Andie was afraid to feed Hope at first. You had to stay over and feed her when Nicky was on the road because Hope would turn blue and gag when she ate and it scared the hell out of Andie."

"That's right." Charlotte nods.

"I hope it's not anything that runs in the family?" Trey sounds concerned.

"All our other grandchildren are healthy." Charlotte responds.

"It's probably because Andie and Nicky are related." Drew suggests.

Chase disagress. "I doubt it. All their other kids are healthy. I see patients at work with these kinds of problems and nobody knows why."

Trey doesn't ask about what Drew just said. He'll ask Ruby about it another time instead he asks Chase. "Are you a doctor too?"

"Yes, I'm a pediatrician like my father."

"Good for you." Trey nods.

Ruby chimes in. "But it all worked out for Andie because Nicky hired her a nanny to help her out with the kids."

"That's only because he goes on the road touring with the band and she's alone." Cooper informs.

"What band?" Trey asks Cooper.

"He's the lead singer of Broken Spell. He formed the band in his garage as a teenager."

"No kidding? You're related to the lead singer of Broken Spell? Ruby didn't tell me that." Trey's excited.

"Yup." Cooper nods. "Nick Poulos is my son-in-law." Cooper doesn't feel it necessary to explain he's also his nephew because then he has to go into the adoption story and how they didn't know they were related and still wouldn't if his Leslie didn't search for her mother.

It occurs to Charlotte that Ruby and her father don't talk much since he doesn't know anything about the Freedman family. Charlotte looks at Ruby now. It also crosses her mind that maybe Andie set _too good_ an example for Ruby, _so_ good, that Ruby wanted to follow in her footsteps.

"How far along are you Ruby?" Chase asks.

"I only found out about two weeks ago so it'll be a while before I have the baby."

"I should be back in my house with Grace-Anne by then." Chase twirls his spaghetti.

"Really?" Charlotte's surprised. "Have you been back to your house recently?"

"No, but it's been seven months. I need to either sell the house or move back in. I can't live with you and dad forever."

"This is good." Cooper pats Chase on the back. "I'll help you get rid of the things you don't want to keep around." Cooper is talking about Michelle's clothes and belongings. Charlotte and Cooper got rid of all the essentials already like her shampoo, deodorant and make-up but they left Michelle's clothes, jewlery and perfume alone, not sure what Chase wanted to do with it. "Maybe we can donate most of the stuff to charity."

Chase nods. "I plan to go to the house some time this week. I can give you her maternity clothes if you need them, Ruby."

"I would be honored. Michelle always wore the nicest clothes." Ruby speaks politely in her Australian accent. "Thank you for thinking of me."

"I'm sorry you lost your wife." Trey tells Chase. He remembers Ruby mentioning it. Ruby was distraught, she had been very fond of the woman and her death was a shock.

"Thank you." After seven months Chase is finally able to talk about Michelle's death without breaking down. "I called Tess's father today." Chase informs them.

"Why?" Cooper asks.

"I spoke to Alexis the other day. She suggested I need to start moving on with my life and that means going back to my house and also confronting Tess about why she left without an explanation. We need closure."

"I agree." Charlotte nods. "I think it's a great idea."

"What did Tess's father say?" Cooper asks

"He said that he'd give Tess the message the next time she calls him."

"Why don't you just call her yourself?" Ruby shrugs.

"Her number is unlisted, her father has instructions not to give it out, especially to me." Chase sips his beer.

"Why don't you call her boyfriend?" Drew suggests. "You know where he works."

"Damien would never give Tess a message from me."

"Stay on top of her father." Cooper encourages Chase. "Make sure he doesn't forget to give Tess the message."

"If I don't hear from her by next week, I'll call him again. I don't want to irritate the man or he'll never give her the message. I'm not one of his favorite people."

"Tess's parents used to adore you." Charlotte points out.

"She must have told them what happened and they blame me for their daughter leaving town and moving back to Georgia." What Chase doesn't know is Tess's father blames him for not wanting to accept responsibility and be a father to Brayden. He chose to marry that whore he cheated on his daughter with instead.

* * *

**REVIEW!**


	89. Chapter 89

_**Chapter 89**_

* * *

Charlotte rinses while Cooper dries. "How do you want to do it, Chief? Good cop, bad cop?"

"No." Charlotte scowls at him. "I always end up being bad cop." She shoves a plate into his chest to dry.

"Easy tiger." Cooper chuckles.

Charlotte grimaces. "How can you laugh at a time like this? Our sixteen year old son knocked up his sixteen year old girlfriend."

"I wasn't laughing at that." Cooper defends. "I was laughing at you."

"I don't see anything funny about tonight." Charlotte scrubs the pan with a soapy sponge. She's working hard and determined, putting all her energy into scrubbing.

"Don't blame it on the pan." Cooper tries to lighten the mood. He holds the pan up and says in a high pitched squeaky voice. "I'm an innocent pan." He earns himself a smile for that before she gets all serious on him. "How did this happen again, Coop?" Charlotte's referring to Andie getting pregnant at seventeen when she says again.

"It's not so much as _how_ but _why_." Cooper answers.

Charlotte hands Cooper the last dish to dry. "You ready to do this?"

"Ready." Cooper nods, drying the dish quickly before putting it in the rack.

They walk into the living room together. Drew's sitting on the couch watching TV. Charlotte picks up the remote and clicks off the television.

"Hey!" Drew protests. "I was watching that."

Charlotte drops the remote down on the coffee table. She hovers over Drew who's seated on the couch. "When were you planning on telling us you knocked Ruby up?"

"I wanted to tell you yesterday and then again today but you've been up at the hospital with Hope. You slept there overnight and I wasn't going to tell you over the phone."

"Are you prepared to be a father?" Charlotte folds her arms still hovering over him. Cooper stands across the room, quiet.

"No." Drew nods.

Cooper offers "Adoption is an option. I was adopted. Have you and Ruby talked about it?

"Ruby wants to keep the baby."

Marley and Noah walk in the door with their suitcases. Charlotte, Cooper and Drew all turn their heads to look at them.

"What are you two doing here?" Cooper looks at them, surprised.

Marley and Noah look just as shocked. "We told you we were flying in today. We're getting married next week. Did you forget?"

"That's right." Cooper scratches head. "It slipped my mind."

"Our wedding?" Noah has an almost horrified expression on his face. "Our wedding slipped your mind?"

"No, not the wedding. We know that. It slipped our minds you were flying in today" Cooper explains.

"We've had a lot going on." Charlotte tells them. "Hope had her surgery the other day and we were helping Andie out."

Noah and Marley just look at them. "We can stay at Marley's mom's house if you're not ready for us." Noah suggests.

"It's okay." Charlotte tells them. "You can stay in your old room and Marley can stay in Andie's old room."

"It's okay, I can stay with my mother." Marley offers.

"No." Charlotte's firm. "We told you that you could stay here when we spoke last month, so you'll stay here. If you don't mind, we were in the middle of something with Drew."

"Okay." Noah looks over at Drew before he picks his suitcase up and climbs up the stairs. Marley follows with her suitcase. "Well, that was a nice welcome." Noah tells Marley, sarcastically, as they drag their suitcases down the hall.

"I can't believe they forgot we were flying in today." Marley does an eye roll.

"I'm surprised they even bothered to remember our wedding."

They walk by Chase's room and spy him sitting on his bed playing with Grace-Anne. "Hi." Marley smiles. "Grace has grown since we were home last."

Chase gets up to hug them both. "That's right. I forgot you were coming home tonight."

"You're not the only one." Noah sighs. "Momma and dad completely forgot we were coming home too."

"They've got a lot on their minds." Chase tells them.

"Yeah… they told us Hope had her surgery and Andie's due soon so she needs their help."

"That's not the worst part." Chase raises his eyebrows. "Did you hear the latest?"

"Guess not." Noah sticks his hands in his pockets while Marley snatches Grace-Anne from Chase's arms to play with her.

"Drew knocked Ruby up." Chase smirks.

"What?" Noah and Marley say in unison.

"Yup. They're downstairs grilling Drew about it now."

"That's what we walked in on." Marley tells Noah.

"We took them by surprise when we walked in." Noah agrees.

"How are they doing with it?" Marley asks Chase.

"Who? My parents or Drew and Ruby?"

"All of them." Marley sneaks a little kiss onto Grace's head.

"My parents aren't taking it very well but Drew and Ruby are taking it in stride. It's like Ruby is even happy about it."

"You're kidding?" Noah screws up his nose. "That's messed up."

"Yeah, she was going on at dinner about how Andie got pregnant as a teenager and how great her life turned out."

Noah snickers. "She's using Andie as a role model? That kid is more of a mess than I thought."

Marley elbows Noah. "Be nice."

Back downstairs Charlotte lectures Drew. "This baby will be your and Ruby's responsibility, if you plan to keep it, plan on being up at all hours of the night feeding it and don't think you're going to sit on this couch and play video games while your father and I take care of your baby. Not happening." Charlotte glares at Drew with her arms folded.

"Fine, momma. I get it."

"I don't think you do, Drew. I don't think you and Ruby really thought this out. You're still kids yourself, you don't know what it's like to care for a baby."

"Momma, we baby-sit for Grace-Anne all the time. We just babysat for her today. We know how to take care of a baby."

"Grace-Anne isn't your full on responsibility. You watch her for a couple hours and then give her back to Chase. If the baby is sick you have to know what to do. Are you prepared for that?"

"We'll be living with you, momma. You're a doctor. Aren't you going to help out if the baby gets sick?"

"Of course I'll help but I'm telling you this baby is going to be your and Ruby's responsibility. I raised my kids already." Charlotte marches up the stairs now. She knows damn well that those kids are going to need all the help they can with a new baby and she knows she's going to give it.

* * *

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	90. Chapter 90

_**Chapter 90**_

* * *

Cooper's flipping pancakes at the stove while Chase reads the paper with his morning cup of Joe. Marley's feeding Grace-Anne her oatmeal cereal. Noah's making funny faces at the baby.

Marley rolls up her eyes a little, "she thinks your weird, Noah, look at the way she's looking at you." The seven month old stares at her Uncle Noah with her big greenish-gray eyes.

Chase informs. "She loves her morning bowl of oatmeal with mashed bananas."

Cooper turns around, holding onto the spatula. "Why don't you let her try a pancake?"

"She's only has a two teeth, dad." Chase looks up from his paper.

"So, pancakes are soft, let her try it."

"She's happy with her oatmeal and bananas, dad. Leave her be."

Charlotte strolls into the kitchen, still wearing her robe. "Mornin'." She goes for the coffee pot.

"Good morning, Dr. King." Marley is the first to say.

Charlotte pours her coffee. "You're marrying my son in one week, start calling me momma." she says casually.

"Thanks…." Marley hesitates. "Momma."

Noah laughs. "Does it feel weird?"

"I have to get used to it." Marley shrugs and feeds Grace another spoonful of oatmeal.

Charlotte sits down next to her. "Are you all ready for the wedding?"

"I have my final dress fitting today , hopefully I can take it home."

Charlotte informs. "Harper looks so grown up in her junior bridesmaid dress and Hope's flower girl dress is adorable. Andie picked them up last month for the girls."

"Will Hope still be able to be in the wedding?" Marley asks. "Since she just had her surgery last week?"

"She only has to walk from point A to B. She can handle it." Charlotte sips her coffee.

Cooper turns around from flipping more pancakes. "That kid is amazing. You should have seen her sitting up in bed, talking and playing just one day after heart surgery." Cooper holds up his index finger and repeats. "One day."

Chase looks up from his newspaper. "She's three years old, dad. Three year olds are resilient. They bounce back fast. Plus, they just repaired a leaky valve, it's not like the first surgery she had where they had to repair her whole heart."

Charlotte holds her coffee cup between her hands, rolling it. "Still, that child is amazin'. She does better than most kids her age. She's had to overcome so much since she was born. She's a tough kid, a little miracle."

"Please, momma?" Chase rolls his eyes. "You should hear yourself."

Noah chuckles and asks Chase. "Why? Is Grace-Anne the only one momma can call amazin'?"

Chase shakes his head from side to side. "I don't like favoritism."

"Ba, ha, ha." Noah laughs. "Coming from momma's favorite Sweet Fella. I never had a nickname. Andie is Sweet Pea, you were Sweet Fella and Drew was Squirt. I was always just Noah."

Charlotte swallows not knowing how to answer. "We _all_ called Drew squirt. It's not like it was a special nickname just from me."

"So?" Noah scoffs. "Only Andie and Chase get the cool nicknames because they were the oldest?"

"If momma and dad had a nickname for you it would be weedhead or my _high _fella." Chase laughs at himself.

"Okay that's enough!" Charlotte says, firmly. "You're acting worse now than when you were children."

Drew walks in the kitchen, yawning. "What's for breakfast?"

"Good morning to you too." Cooper turns around. "I'm making pancakes."

Noah looks at Drew. "So, should I say congratulations or offer you my condolences?"

Drew screws up his face at his brother, it's too early for these word games. "Huh?"

"I heard you're going to be a daddy. Should I say congratulations? In other words is it a good thing or should I offer my condolences like it's a bad thing?" Noah explains.

Drew sits down. "Who told you?"

"Chase."

Drew glares at Chase. "News travels fast."

Noah scoffs, "what? I'm not allowed to know what's going on in my family. You're saying Chase shouldn't have told me?"

Charlotte tells them all. "Can we all just keep this pregnancy quiet until after the wedding?"

"Why?" Marley wipes Grace-Anne's face.

"I don't want everyone starin' and talkin' at the wedding about it."

Drew drinks a cup of milk. "They're not going to be staring and gossiping about you momma. They'll be staring and gossiping at me and Ruby."

Charlotte shakes her head. "You children are a direct reflection of me."

Cooper places the plate of pancakes on the table. Chase, Noah and Drew all start grabbing at them with their forks. "Hey! Save some for me." Cooper yelps. "I just slaved over the stove cooking while you're all sitting here chit-chatting."

"I was feeding Grace-Anne." Marley defends, grabbing a pancake for herself.

Charlotte leans back in her chair watching them all. She misses her weekend family breakfasts with her kids. The kids and Cooper continue to banter back and forth over who has more pancakes, Charlotte smiles. She loves this.

Cooper looks over at her. "You better grab a pancake, Chief, before they're all gone. I'm not making anymore."

"You would for me." She flashes him a slight grin.

"No." He says, then quickly changes his answer. "Yes, I would."

"Ooooh" Noah laughs. "You are so whipped, dad."

Charlotte raises her eyebrows. "Your father is _not_ whipped."

"That's right." Cooper tells Noah. "That's what marraige is about. You do nice things for each other, you take care of each other. If your momma wants more pancakes I'll make them for her but just her, not any of you." He teases.

"Hey!" Drew complains. "But we're your children."

Cooper looks at Drew. "You better learn how to make your own pancakes. If you're going to be a daddy... you better learn about life. It's your turn to make pancakes."

Drew lies his head down in his arms on the kitchen table, he knows this is not going to be easy. His parents aren't going to be as easy on him as they were with Andie because of that whole _fool me once, fool me twice _saying. He's going to have to rethink this situation and talk to Ruby.

Charlotte looks down at her youngest son with his head on the table. She wants to hug him, to tell him it's not the end of the world, that'll be alright. She stares at him a moment but stops herself, instead she says, "you made your bed, kid, now you gotta lie in it."

Noah laughs, "but make sure Ruby's not in that bed or you'll end up with five kids like Andie."

Chase cuts up his pancake. "Yeah, you should hear Ruby talk... it's like Andie is her idol or something."

"That's enough, you two." Charlotte warns Chase and Noah. "Leave your brother alone and eat your pancakes."

"Aren't you going to eat?" Cooper asks Drew.

Drew gets up from the table. "I'm going to my room, I lost my appetite."

Charlotte watches her son leave, wanting to hug him but she doesn't. She's not going to make this easy for him no matter how hard it is for her to watch him deal with this.

* * *

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	91. Chapter 91

_**CHAPTER 91**_

* * *

Harper lets Charlotte and Marley in the front door while Andie rests on the couch with her feet up.

"Marley!" Harper squeezes her as hard as can be. "I missed you."

"I missed you to, Harps." She kisses the top of her head. "Are you excited about the wedding?"

"Yeah! I can't wait!" Harper answers. "I have the dress in my closet. I try it on every day."

Marley smiles at her soon-to-be-niece. "That's why I came. I want to see you and Hope in your dresses."

"I'll go get it." Harper runs off.

Andie's resting on the couch with her swollen ankles up on a pillow. She calls out to Harper. "Get Hope's dress too and tell Hope to come in here!"

"Okay, momma." Harper runs upstairs.

"How are you doing?" Marley asks Andie.

"I'm good. I can't wait to get this baby out."

"I hope you don't go into labor during my wedding." Marley raises her eyebrows.

Andie nods. "That would be my luck, but don't worry I'll sneak out quietly if I do."

"I'll keep my fingers crossed, Nicky's singing at the reception." Marley sits down next to Andie on the couch, looking at her swollen ankles. "So this is what I have to look foward to?"

"Are you preggers?" Andie asks.

"No, but I hope to be someday."

"How long are you and Noah going to wait?" Andie asks.

"Probably until we finish up our residencies but if it happens before then it'll be okay. All these babies in your family are making me itch for one of my own." Marley watches Charlotte stroll over to the couch.

"We certainly have been blessed by the fertility gods." Charlotte gently grabs a strand of Andie's hair to play with. "How are you doin', Sweet Pea?"

Andie rubs her swollen belly. "I can't wait to get this baby out. It's a big one, look how huge I am, and look at my ankles. I don't think I can get into my heels for the wedding."

Marley chuckles. "We'll forgive you if you wear flats."

Andie adds. "I may come in slippers."

Charlotte changes the subject. "How's Hopie doing?"

"Great, momma. You'd never know the girl had surgery ten days ago. She's been running all over the house. I told Gretchen to keep her quiet in the playroom and do some crafts with her."

"Who's Gretchen?" Marley asks.

"She's our Nanny. Nicky hired her." Andie scoots up. "I mean look at me." She points at her belly. "I can't be chasin' little kids around like this."

Marley smiles. She doesn't want to say Andie is huge but it slips out. "That _is_ going to be one big baby."

"We think it's a boy." Charlotte tells Marley. "Both Charley and Michael Nikolas were big babies, over nine pounds. Harper and Hope were both on the small side."

"But momma I was trying to hide my pregnancy with Harper, I dieted not to gain weight and she was still six pounds and Hope was born small because of her heart defect, she was a little early too."

Charlotte looks at Andie's belly. "I still think it's a boy."

"You don't want to find out?" Marley asks.

Andie shakes her head. "There's not many real surprises in the world. Besides, we have two of each so it doesn't matter one way or the other. We honestly only care that the baby is healthy."

"I'm assuming it is?" Marley asks.

"Yep. I had an amnio and everything is A-OK this time."

"That's great to hear."

Gretchen, the young nanny with the long blonde hair walks in the room carrying the girls' dresses on their hangers. Harper and Hope follow behind her. "Harper says you wanted to see the dresses?"

"Yes." Andie answers from the couch. "Can you help them into their dresses?"

"We'll do it." Charlotte tells Gretchen. "You go check on the boys."

Harper goes into the bathroom to change.

"It's okay." Andie calls out to her eleven year old daughter. "There's no boys in the room."

Charlotte chuckles while she helps three year old Hope change. "Harper's eleven, she's not going to change in a room full of people, doesn't matter if we're family."

Marley helps Charlotte change Hope into her dress. They look at the three year old with the shoulder length dark hair and long bangs. She looks back at them with her big green eyes for approval.

"She looks just like her daddy." Marley tells Andie.

"Hope, you look like a beautiful princess. Do you like it?" Charlotte asks.

"Yesh." The three year old spins around in her pink, tulle, baby doll dress. It's a loose fitting dress which works out good with her chest bandage. The sleeveless tea length dress has a satin floral ribboned bottom which the three-year-old likes to watch spin.

"Stop spinning, Hope." Andie worries. "You're supposed to be resting."

"Okay." Charlotte tells Hope. "We don't want to mess up your dress." She starts to change the three-year-old back into her play clothes.

Harper comes out of the bathroom. They've always called her a mini-Charlotte and the eleven-year-old is looking more and more like her grandmother as she grows. She's wearing her straight, blonde hair down long. Harper turns around to show off her taffeta, junior bridesmaid dress. The fuchsia dress has a flower trimmed neckline. She spins around to show them the knee length dress flow." Charlotte ties the black sash high on her waistline and comments. "You look like a princess."

"Wow, Harps! You look beautiful." Andie calls out from the couch.

Nicky walks in the door. He looks at Harper and jokes. "Who is that beautiful little lady in my house?"

"Ha, ha, poppa. It's me!" Harper hurries over to give Nicky a hello kiss.

Marley greets Nicky with a hug next. "Hey Mr. Big Shot! Am I allowed to hug you now that your famous?"

Nicky grins. "I wish I was famous."

"They're playing Broken Spell on the radio in Maryland. You're famous."

Andie tells Marley. "Not famous enough that he gets recognized walking down the street. Only the big Broken Spell fans recognize him."

"That's good." Charlotte tells her. "You don't want women chasing your husband down the street, Sweet Pea."

"You better watch out." Marley tells Nicky as she looks at Harper. "The boys are going to be chasing her down the street in a few more years."

"Nuh ..uh." Nicky grabs onto Harper and lifts her up into the air before putting her back down. "I'm locking this one up when she turns sixteen. No boy is gonna lay a hand on my rabbit."

"Good luck with that." Charlotte flashes Nicky a sargastic grin. "Cooper tried to do the same thing with Andie but _you_ wouldn't stay away from her."

Nicky tells Charlotte. "That's not happening with Harper. Those boys will be looking down the barrel of a shotgun if they lay a hand on my baby girl."

Charlotte bites her lip before answering. "Ah, if only Cooper could hear you talking now."

"Momma, Nicky didn't chase me. I chased him." Andie reminds her momma.

Charlotte looks at Nicky and quips."What goes around comes around. Good luck."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Andie asks her momma.

"You two put your father and I through the ringer. Now it's gonna be your turn."

"You sound happy about it, momma."

"Maybe you kids will learn to appreciate us once you see what we you put us through."

"Momma's right." Marley tells Nicky. "You did knock Andie up when she was still in high school."

"Momma?" Nicky looks at Marley. "When did you start calling her momma?"

"What does knock up mean?" Harper asks.

Everyone ignores her.

Charlotte tells Nicky, "you can call me momma too. I told you that a long time ago."

"What does knock up mean?" Harper asks again, this time louder.

Nicky shoots Marley a look. "Thanks." He turns to his daughter. "Go change out of your dress before you mess it up. I need you to help me make dinner tonight."

"What are we having?" Harper asks.

"Tacos."

"I love making tacos." Harper runs back to the bathroom to change into her clothes. She'll google the phrase _knock up _later on the computer since none of the adults want to answer her.

After Harper leaves the living room to change, Charlotte says to Nicky. "I was wondering how you were going to get out of that one."

Marley asks Nicky. "I guess Harper doesn't know you knocked Andie up as a teenager?"

Nicky shrugs. "Why does she need to know? She's a kid, she's only eleven."

Marley folds her arms together. "She'll figure it out one day. All she has to do is subtract her age from Andie's."

"We'll talk to her about it when and _if _she asks." Andie tells Marley. "No biggie."

"What about the cousin thing?" Marley asks. "Does she know about that?"

"Of course not!" Andie huffs. "Why would we sit down and tell her that? It doesn't matter."

"It's better if she hears it from the two of you rather than somebody else." Marley advises.

Andie pushes herself up by the hands to rise her eight and a half month belly from the couch. "You're marrying my brother in a week and you think that means you can tell us all what to do?"

"Andie," is all Charlotte says.

"You're starting to remind me of your mother." Andie tells Marley. "They say a boy should look carefully at a girl's mother before he marries her."

"Andie." Charlotte flashes her daughter an unapproving look.

Andie hesitates a moment before sitting back down on the couch. "I'm sorry." Andie apologizes to Marley. "I get cranky easier these days. I feel like a whale. I just want this pregnancy to be over and this baby out."

"It's okay." Marley nods.

"We're gonna get goin'. We'll let you get some rest." Charlotte tells Andie. "Say goodbye to the kids for us." Charlotte leads Marley out the door.

"I can't believe Andie got so upset." Marley tells Charlotte as they get in the car.

"You hit a nerve with her. The cousin thing has always been a sensitive subject that everyone tip-toes around."

"But sooner or later Harper will find out. Don't you think it should be from Andie and Nicky?"

Charlotte drives. "Andie's swept it under the rug and you just pulled up the rug and made her think about it."

"I shouldn't have opened my mouth. I don't want to be like my mother and tell people what to do. Should I send Andie some flowers to apologize?"

"Do absolutely nothing. You didn't do anything wrong." Charlotte drives Marley to her dress fitting.

* * *

Drew knocks on Ruby's door. "How ya' going?" She answers, smiling happily.

"Okay, how about you?" Drew asks.

"I'm great!"

"You're not feeling any of that morning sickness or anything?"

"Nope, not me, not yet anyway." She sits on the couch. "Look." She shows him. "I bought this baby book of names. I was just looking through it."

"Already." Drew scrunches up his nose. "We don't even know if it's a girl or a boy."

"We can pick one for each. You know what would be really cool?"

"What?" Drew asks.

"Twins. I like the identical kind that nobody can tell apart, this way they can play pranks on their teachers."

Drew looks at Ruby before telling her, "I've been thinking."

"Well, that's good." Ruby laughs.

Drew continues, "I've been thinking about giving the baby up for adoption. I don't think I'm ready to be a dad."

"Don't worry, Drew. I'll do everything. You don't have to do a thing."

"You can't do it on your own." Drew warns her.

"We'll be living with your parents. They'll help."

"That's just it." Drew says. "I don't think they will. They helped out a lot with Andie when she had Harper. They don't want to do it again. They think we expect it and are taking them for granted so they're not going to help like they did with Harper."

Ruby screws up her face. "Did they say that to you?"

"Not exactly but my dad keeps saying I have to learn how to do this and that for myself now that I'm going to be a father. It's like he's punishing me." Drew looks at the floor.

"I'm not giving this baby up." Ruby tells Drew. "I'll do it on my own if I have to but I'm not giving it up and nobody can make me, not even you." Ruby rambles on. "I'll run away if I have to. I swear, I'll run away."

"Don't do that. We're in this together. I'll stick with you whatever you decide." Drew plops on the couch and picks up the remote.

* * *

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	92. Chapter 92

_**CHAPTER 92**_

* * *

Nicky lets Charlotte and Cooper in the front door. "Sorry, I had to call you but the nanny went off duty at six."

Charlotte strolls in the door. "How's Andie?"

"She's okay, she's saying goodbye to Harper."

"Harper's not asleep yet?" Charlotte looks upstairs.

"She's too excited, so is Charley. They're both in bed in their pj's but they can't sleep."

Charlotte turns to Nicky with a smile. "Ya got some excitin' stuff goin' on."

Nicky nods. "Yeah, I was hoping Andie would make it until after Noah and Marley's wedding but the baby has his own agenda."

Cooper's eyes light up. "You said _his_, did you find out it's a boy?"

"No, just a hunch. " Nicky boasts.

"It looks like you and Andie can't be in the wedding now." Cooper informs Nicky.

Nicky agrees, nodding. "Yeah, we feel bad, they've already lost Michelle as a bridesmaid and now we have to back out too."

Cooper jokes. "_You _can always be Chase's partner."

Nicky shakes his head. "I don't think so."

Andie walks down the stairs rubbing her hand against her lower back. "Ready to go?"

Charlotte strolls over to feel her belly. "You haven't dropped yet, you're still carrying high."

"I don't know why I haven't dropped yet but I'm feelin' something," Andie informs. "I'm having painful back spasms and I'm due in four days."

"I was hoping you'd last until after the wedding." Charlotte hugs Andie goodbye.

"These things can't be controlled, momma."

Cooper hugs Andie now. "Good luck, Andie Candy. Call us when you have the baby."

"We will." Andie and Nicky walk out the door. Charlotte and Cooper head upstairs to check on the kids. They tiptoe into Hope's room first. She's sound asleep. "She looks like an angel." Cooper reports.

"They all do when they're asleep." Charlotte watches her granddaughter sleep a minute before suggesting, "let's go check Michael."

"Right behind ya, Chief." Cooper follows Charlotte to the small bedroom across the hall from Hope's.

"See." Charlotte looks at the four year-old in his red, car-shaped bed before whispering to Cooper, "devil by day, little angel by night."

"I think I can see his halo." Cooper snickers quietly before walking into Charley's room. They open the door to find the six-year-old red-headed boy staring back at them with his big blue eyes. "Why are you still awake?" Charlotte asks her grandson. " It's late and you have school in the mornin'."

"I'm scared." He tells her.

"Why?"

"I can't tell you."

Cooper sits on his bed with him. "How can we help you not be scared if you don't tell us _why_ you're scared?"

He talks in a hushed voice. "Harper says momma might die tonight and we'll never see her again." Tears begin to fall down his cheeks.

"No..no." Cooper scoops Charley up in his arms. "That's not true."

"She said Aunt Michelle died after Grace-Anne was born and the same thing might happen to momma."

Cooper holds his grandson's chin in the palm of his hand and looks into his eyes. "Your momma is not going to die and you _are_ going to see her again."

"Do you promise me?"

"Cross my heart, hope to die." Cooper makes an X over the left side of his chest. Charlotte stands in the doorway, looking on.

"But how do you know, grandpa?"

"I'm a doctor. I know about these things. Move over, champ, I'll stay with you until you fall asleep."

"Can you do the 'Eensy Weensy Spider'? My momma does it for me before I fall asleep."

Cooper emphasizes in a loud voice. "Can _I_ do the 'Eensy Weensy Spider'? Who do you think taught it to your momma?"

"You did grandpa?"

Cooper creeps his fingers up Charley's back while saying in a sing-song voice. "The Eensy Eeensy spider went up the water spout...down came the rain." Cooper runs his fingers down the little boys back…"And washed the spider out. Out came the sun and dried up all the rain and the Eensy Weensy spider went up the spout again."

"Again, grandpa, again."

Charlotte tells Cooper. "I'm going to check on Harper." Charlotte walks in her eleven year old granddaughter's room. The young blonde is reading her Nook. "Hi Nan." She looks up at Charlotte.

"Hey." Charlotte sits next to her on the bed. "Is there anything you wanna talk about?"

"No."

"Well, I wanna talk to you about somethin'."

Harper puts her Nook down. "What, Nan?"

Charlotte licks her lower lip before asking. "Why did you tell Charley your momma might die tonight?"

"Well, she might. I wasn't lying. Aunt Michelle died when she had Grace-Anne."

"Do you really believe your momma might die or did you just say that to scare your little brother?"

"It can happen. It happened to Aunt Michelle. I need to prepare Charley just in case. I mean he was so happy that momma is going to have the baby. You know how sad he will be if she dies, Nan."

"We would all be sad but your momma is not gonna die."

Harper shakes her head. "You don't know that. Nobody thought Aunt Michelle would die but she did."

"Your momma has already had four babies. This one should be a piece of cake for her. Grace-Anne was Michelle's first baby and those are always the hardest but did you know your momma gave birth to you in her bedroom and you were her first? Your momma is real good at having babies so you don't have to worry."

"Why did she have me in her bedroom?"

"She didn't know you were coming. You surprised her. You surprised all of us by coming in your momma's bedroom but your momma did very well with it even with not being at a hospital."

"My momma's like a super mom."

"That she is." Charlotte gives Harper a goodnight kiss. "Your momma's going to be just fine, go to sleep. You have to be up for school in the mornin'."

"Can you stay with me a little while, Nan?"

"I sure can." Charlotte scoots up on the bed lifting her feet up.

"Can you do 'X Marks the Spot' on my back? My poppa usually does it for me, I can't fall asleep until someone does it."

"Okay." Charlotte says. "It's been a while. Let me see if I remember that one. X marks the spot." Charlotte makes an X on Harper's back. "With a dot, dot, dot." Charlotte traces the movements on Harper's back. "And a dash, dash, dash and a big question mark. Tickle up, tickle down, tickle Harper all around." Harper laughs as Charlotte tickles her. "I'm rusty, kid. I forgot the rest."

"It goes crack an egg." Harper knocks on Charlotte's knee. "Crack another egg." She knocks on the other knee. "With a hug and a squeeze from you to me. That's how me and my pop say it."

"Okay." Charlotte starts over and does it again.

After ten verses of the Eensy Weensy spider and five versions of X Marks the Spot Charlotte and Cooper meet downstairs on the couch.

"How many times did you have to play spider?" Charlotte smiles at Cooper.

"Ten. How about you?"

"Five but X Marks the Spot."

"I forgot that one." Cooper wraps his arm around Charlotte. "How does it go again?"

"I was rusty on it too. Harper refreshed my memory."

"Well, how does it go?" Cooper asks. "Tell me, I forgot."

Charlotte makes and X on Cooper's back. "X-marks the spot ." She goes through the motions. "With a dot, dot, dot...-"

"I remember now. Let me finish." Cooper takes over, doing the movements on Charlotte. "Tickle up, tickle down. Tickle Char all around." Cooper tickles Charlotte down onto the couch.

"Don't forget the hug and squeeze." She laughs.

"Are you kidding? That's the best part." Cooper squeezes up against Charlotte and kisses her.

"Coop?" She smiles. "We're babysittin'."

Cooper shrugs. "They're all sleeping. Those kids can sleep through a fire alarm. We're fine." He starts unbuttoning her blouse while kissing down her neck. Charlotte pulls his t-shirt over his head and runs her hands up and down his back. The front door swings open. Andie and Nicky walk in.

"Whoa!" Andie yelps, covering her eyes.

"Holy!" Nicky starts to snicker but turns around to face the door.

"What are you doing home?" Cooper jumps up and pulls his shirt back on.

Charlotte quickly re-buttons her blouse. "You're supposed to be havin' a baby."

Andie talks with one hand covering her eyes while her parents fix themselves. "I'm not in labor. The ER doctor said the back spasms are caused by sciatica, the baby's lying on a nerve. I haven't even started dilating yet. I should be okay for Noah's wedding. I mean you never know I could go into labor anytime but since I haven't even started to dilate the doctor doesn't think I'll go into labor until my due date at the earliest."

"Which isn't for another four days." Nicky tells them with his back facing them. "Can we turn around yet?"

Charlotte finishes with the last button. "You can turn around."

Andie shakes her head laughing. "We might as well of hired a couple horny teenagers to baby-sit."

Cooper responds. "You'll be lucky if you have as good a love life as your momma and I do when you're our age."

"Cooper." Charlotte swats his arm.

"What? " He looks at her. "It's true."

"_They_ don't need to know it." Charlotte picks up her purse. "Your kids are asleep _thankyouverymuch." _She says quickly before heading for the door.

"What's the rush, momma? Don't you want to hang out with us a little while?" Andie watches her momma walk towards the door.

Cooper whispers to Andie on the way out. "She wants to finish what we started. She can't resist me." Cooper follows Charlotte out the door.

"I think your momma was embarrassed. That's why she wanted to get out of here so fast." Nicky quirks an eyebrow.

"Twenty bucks says they're gonna do the horizontal hoola when they get home." Andie challenges Nicky.

"Oh... I believe that too." He smirks. "A little embarrassment isn't going to get in your momma's way of a good time."

* * *

_**Reviews are awesome! Hope y'all have an awesome day =)**_


	93. Chapter 93

_**CHAPTER 93**_

* * *

Marley and Noah just finished saying their vows up at the altar.

The pastor announces *I present you - Mr. and Mrs. Noah Freedman!*

A loud round of applause echoes through the large church before the wedding party make their back way down the aisle. The flower girl, Hope is dressed in a pink baby doll tea length dress. She walks hand in hand with her four year old brother, Michael Nikolas, who is the ring bearer.

Michael's wearing a little black tuxedo and carrying a small satin white pillow.

Next comes Harper, the junior bridesmaid, wearing a fuchsia knee length dress with a black sash. She's trying to keep pace with her six year old brother, Charley, who's dressed in a black suit, white shirt and fuchsia tie.

Ruby follows holding hands with Drew. She has on a sage knee length bridesmaid dress. Drew wears a back suit with a sage colored tie to match Ruby's dress. Andie and Nicky are a few paces behind them.

Andie's due to give birth in two days but that doesn't stop her. She walks proudly holding hands with Nicky in her red knee length dress and of course Nicky's wearing a black suit with a matching red tie. They're followed by the maid of honor, Lila

Lila's wearing a lavender dress while Dylan marches with her in a suit and lavender tie to match her dress.

Chase, the best man marches down last before the bride and groom. He's wearing a black suit with a blue tie. Michelle was supposed to be wearing a matching blue dress. Chase carries his eight month old daughter, Grace-Anne, in her a little blue dress to match her daddy's tie.

Finally, the bride and groom stroll down the aisle with huge grins across their faces as the camera's snap away. Noah's wearing a black tuxedo. Marley's wearing a white A-line dress with floral detail, an illusion neckline and lace sleeves. She's has a single white flower in her long thick dark hair.

After they all meet on the church steps to take formal pictures for the photographer. "You have such a beautiful family." Violet tells Cooper.

"Thank you." Cooper looks at his children and grandchildren posing for the photographer.

"A huge family." Violet adds.

"It's still growing." Cooper raises his brows looking at Drew and Ruby.

"Yes, isn't Andie due tomorrow?"

"She's due in two more days." Cooper nods.

Violet tells him, "just think, Coop, soon Noah and Marley will probably start a family and you'll have even more grandchildren, at least you have a while before Drew starts reproducing."

Cooper looks at Violet. He wants to tell her the news so badly, not because he's happy or proud but because he needs to hear what the therapist in her has to say about this. Why would his son do this to them? They've already went through this with Andie when she had Harper, now they have to deal with another teen pregnancy. Drew should have been more careful. But Cooper can't talk about it. Charlotte has sworn him to secrecy until after the wedding.

After pictures, they climb into their limousines for the wedding reception at Giorgio's. Broken Spell will be performing at the wedding which means Nicky has to be on stage. Andie doesn't mind, she figures she'll want to sit most of the night with her huge pregnant belly. Broken Spell starts out singing the song *Marry Me* by the group *Train* as their wedding song. All the couples join them for their first dance for luck. Cooper dances with Charlotte. He looks over at Ruby and Drew who are having a make out session while they slow dance. Cooper grabs Drew's suit sleeve. "You already got her pregnant, control yourselves, you're putting on a show."

Ruby and Drew decide to place their hands on each others hips for now. "What's your dad's problem?" Ruby asks.

"He's still upset that I knocked you up."

"Oh." Ruby watches Charlotte and Cooper dance. After the slow song is over, the band plays *I Gotta Feeling* by the *Black Eyed Peas.* Charlotte and Cooper sit down with Violet and Pete, Sam and Addison while the young people all dance. Harper runs out on the dance floor now with Rosie and Charley. The three of them dance. Harper moves her hips dancing in a manner usually seen in teenagers. Rosie and Charley copy her and move their hips the same way. "Where did Harper learn to dance like that?" Addison asks.

"Her father's in the band." Cooper raises his eyebrows. "She gets it from watching him wiggle around on stage."

"Look at them go." Violet stares at the children. "If they're dancing like that now what are they going to be dancing like when they're teenagers?"

"Not my problem." Cooper sips his drink. "It's Nicky's problem now."

Harper and Rosie dance over to the stage. Hope follows them. "What are you doing? Why don't you wanna dance no more?" The three year-old questions her older sister.

"We're waiting to make a song request. We want daddy to sing our favorite song." Harper answers. Hope waits behind them.

"What are you doing? Go dance." Harper tells Hope.

"I wanna request my favorite song too." Hope tells them.

"What's your favorite song?" Rosie asks Hope.

"I'm Elmo and I Know It." The three year old answers, proudly.

Harper explains. "This is a wedding, Hope, daddy's not gonna sing an Elmo song."

Nicky looks down at the girls from the stage. "Can I help you, little princesses?" He asks through his microphone.

Hope yells out. "Can you sing the Elmo Song, daddy_?"_

Nicky smiles and looks at his band, a few minutes later they start playing "_I'm Elmo and I know it* _to the tune of _*I'm Sexy and I Know It* _by LMFAO.

_"I'm Elmo and I know it! Kids, look at these crayons! Kids, look at these crayons!_ "

Nicky sings the children's parody of *I'm Sexy and I Know it.* The tweens and adults all get out on the dance floor to bop to the catchy tune. Hope twirls around in her flower girl dress. "May I have this dance?" Cooper asks her as he takes her hand and helps her twirl.

Charlotte holds hands with both Michael and Charley as she swings her hips to the Elmos song.

Dylan and Lila both laugh as they dance with Clove while Addison shows Harper and Rosie her moves. Almost everyone's up on the dance floor having a good time. Andie gets up to join them. She's happy when the song ends so she can get off her swollen feet. Her nine month pregnant belly and swollen ankles make it hard to dance these days. Charlotte and Cooper return to their seats after the song ends. Four year old Michael Nikolas decides to stroll around sticking his fingers in drink glasses to swipe the maraschino cherries. He pops them in his mouth as he goes along. Three year old Hope drags Clove along with her as they follow Michael looking for the sweet cherries and spinning the little umbrellas they find in empty drink glasses.

Nicky's watching them as he sings up on stage. After he finishes his next song, he calls out "Hey Michael. Atta boy!" He gives his son a thumbs up. Andie looks over at Michael Nikolas, she's not sure why Nicky did that. She gets up to check on Michael when she feels fluid gush down her leg. She tells Danielle "Get your mom and meet me in the bridal suite." Danielle does as told while Andie pulls her red heels off and rushes to the bridal suite. Luckily it's empty since everyone's on the dance floor or talking at their tables. Danielle and Addison rush in. "My water just broke." Andie tells Addison. "What should I do?"

"Since it's your fifth baby, I'd say get to the hospital. The fifth one will come faster than any of the others." Addison advises.

"But Nicky just started singing. I hate to pull him away from Noah's wedding so early on."

"Lie down on that couch." Addison tells her. "I'll check your cervix and see how much time you have."

Andie does as told. Addison pulls her panties down. "Danielle, do you have a flashlight?"

"Oh yeah, mom, I bring a flashlight to every wedding I go to." Danielle says, sarcastically

"Run to my car and get mine, smart aleck." Addison swats Danielle on the butt while she presses on Andie's belly. Danielle comes back about five minutes later with the flashlight.

"You're three centimeters dilated already. You'll go quick since it's the fifth baby. We need to get you to the hospital unless you want to deliver at your brother's wedding in this bridal suite." Addison informs her.

"Damn!" Andie groans. "I hate doing this to Noah and Marley."

"At least they got Nicky to sing their wedding song." Danielle tries to lighten things up.

Addison helps Andie off the couch. "C'mon, momma. Time to have a baby."

"He or she probably heard his daddy's band and wants to come out and dance." Danielle jokes.

Andie asks Danielle. "Can you keep an eye on the kids for me? Maybe Chase can take them to my parents house after the wedding."

"Don't worry about a thing. I'll make sure the kids are taken care of." Danielle assures her best friend.

Andie, Danielle and Addison walk back out into the wedding reception area . Nicky's in the middle of singing a song. The three women point to Andie's belly and mouth the words *now* to him. Nicky gets it. He finishes the song and then asks her over the microphone. "Is it time?" All eyes are on Andie. She feels her face get real hot and flushed. Why did he have to go and do that? She nods.

"Her water broke!" Danielle yells out. "Are you coming?"

Nicky looks around at the other members of the band. "I gotta go guys." He turns to Marley and Danielle. "I'm sorry but Jodie will take excellent care of you! She's awesome."

Marley and Noah nod then look at each other. They watch Charlotte and Cooper rush to Andie's side and out the door with her.

"They just left our wedding without saying goodbye to us." Marley pouts.

"Well, my sister _is_ having a baby."

"I don't mean your sister, I get that. I mean your parents. They didn't have to go with her. It's her fifth kid."

"Welcome to my life now that you're my wife." Noah smirks at his rhyme. "I'm the forgotten middle child, remember?"

"I hope they don't expect us to take the kids home on top of it. It's our wedding night." Marley looks around at Harper, Charley, Michael Nikolas and Hope.

"Chase can take care of them." Noah shrugs.

"Chase has Grace-Anne. He can't take four more."

Noah offers a solution."Hope likes to play with Clove so I'll ask Lila and Dylan to take Hope. Danielle and Lucas can take Harper since she's friends with Rosie, that leaves Chase to take home Charley and Michael. Don't worry about it Marz Barz. Let's just enjoy the rest of our wedding."

Jodie's singing a Shania Twain song "From this Moment." Noah and Marley step back on the dance floor holding each other close. "Sometimes it's good to be the forgotten child." He tells Marley. "You get away with a lot more."

"I remember." Marley sighs, thinking about their teenage years and smoking weed behind their parents backs.

Jodie and the band switch over to an upbeat song. Marley looks in Noah's eyes with a dreamy sort of look. "What are you smiling about?" He asks.

"Listen to this song." She tells him.

"Still the one?" Noah asks.

"Yeah and you're _still the one_ for me after all this time."

He grabs her in for a quick kiss before they have fun bopping and singing along to *Still The One.*

* * *

_**Review and have a great day, Y'all, =)**_


	94. Chapter 94

_**Chapter 94**_

* * *

"You're doing great Belle," Nicky reassures her. "Just don't crush every single bone in my hand, okay?"

"I swear Nicky, this is the last baby we are ever going to have," Andie snaps, glaring at him. "I'm done having babies! When this is done, you're going to schedule yourself for a vasectomy."

Nicky leans down and presses a kiss to her forehead. He knows it's the pain talking. "Sure, thing."

"Alright, on the count of three," Addison looks up to see if Andie's ready. "One, two, three…"

Andie squeezes Nicky's hand on one side and her momma's on the other. She clenches her jaw and pushes with all of her might.

"This is a big one." Addison tells her. "I need to do an episiotomy." Nicky cringes as he watches Addison cut his wife with a scissor in the most sensitive of spots. "Don't worry, she can't feel it, she's numb." Addison tells him.

"Okay, Andie. Give me one more big push." Addison encourages.

Andie clenches her jaw together again while gripping her momma's left hand and Cooper's right hand now. Nicky's standing behind Addison with his Ipod.

"You better not be filming this." Andie snaps at him before she gives one final push.

Cooper jokes. "We need to show that video to Drew and Ruby."

"It's a little late for that, Coop." Charlotte holds onto Andie's hand and pulls her left leg back by the knee to assist. Andie and Nicky are too caught up in the moment to catch onto what Charlotte and Cooper are referring to.

Andie feels a gush of fluid and next thing she knows the baby is out.

"Well?" she asks. "Is it a girl or a boy?"

"It'a a boy!" Nicky does a victory dance.

"What are you dancing about?" Charlotte watches Nicky. "You already have two boys. Ya'd think it was your first."

"I knew it was a boy." Nicky gloats. "I have bets on it."

Addison hands a pair of scissors to Nicky, "Would you like to do the honors?"

Nicky clips the newborn's umbilical cord.

Addison hands the baby to the nurse. She sews up Andie's episiotomy while she waits for the placenta to expel itself. The nurse cleans up the baby. Suddenly, "Waaaah…Waaaah….Waaah" echoes throughout the room.

"Music to my ears." Cooper stands over the nurses shoulder's. "Ten fingers and ten toes, he's perfect."

Andie's grins, her heart swells with joy as she listens to her little boy's first cries. It's her fifth but it's just as special each time. "Who does this one look like?" She asks her dad.

Cooper looks at the baby. "He's bald and has a round face. Who does that sound like?" Cooper jokes.

"He's a big boy, ten pounds plus two ounces." The nurse announces before she puts a diaper on the baby and wraps him up in a blue blanket. "Here you go," The nurse carefully transfers the newborn into Andie's arms.

Charlotte marvels at the sight of her new grandson. She studies him carefully. Reddish-blonde peach fuzz adorns the top of his head. His skin is very fair like his momma's and grandma's. Andie's other babies were all born with full heads of hair. This newborn has full lips like both his parents and what looks to be Nicky's nose. His face is shaped like Cooper and Chase's, and he has Charlotte's eyes. "This little fella is a mix of all of us." Charlotte announces. "Nicky's nose, Cooper's shape face, my eyes, Andie's reddish blonde hair."

"You wanna hold him, momma?"

"You bet." Charlotte reaches eagerly for her new grandson. The baby boy looks up at Charlotte, it feels like she's looking into her own eyes.

Nicky stands close by with his Ipod, snapping pictures.

Cooper wraps his arm around Charlotte for a picture with their sixth grandchild. His eyes fill with tears.

"Are you crying, daddy?" Andie looks at Cooper.

"Every newborn is a miracle. This never gets old no matter how many grandchildren I have."

"See, Belle." Nicky smiles. "We need to have another one to make your dad happy."

"Seven grandchildren are enough." Charlotte informs.

"Seven, momma?" Andie looks at Charlotte. "Retirement is turning your brain to mush, this is your sixth grandchild, he's my fifth child and Chase has one that equal six."

"We have another one on the way." Cooper informs.

"Oh my God." Andie exclaims. "Marley's pregnant? She looked great in her wedding dress."

"Marley's not pregnant." Charlotte quirks up an eyebrow.

Andie and Nicky screw up their faces in unison. "Then who?" Andie asks. "Did Chase knock up some chick while he was grieving?"

"Not Chase." Cooper shakes his head.

Andie gasps. "Not Drew and Ruby?"

"Bingo." Cooper groans.

"Oh my God." Andie can't believe it.

"If Ruby was my daughter, I'd kill Drew." Nicky shakes his head at Cooper.

Cooper reminds Nicky, "kind of like I wanted to kill you when you knocked up _my_ seventeen year old daughter?" Cooper reminds.

"Oh..yeah" Nicky grins now. "That seems like a lifetime ago."

"Better keep Harper on a tight leach." Charlotte warns. "Won't be long before she's of the age."

"No boy's getting their hands on Harper." Nicky says in an almost threatening matter.

Charlotte and Cooper exchange glances before Charlotte says. "Good luck."

"It's the circle of life." Cooper smirks at Nicky. "Now it's your turn to see what you put us through."

Addison finishes delivering the placenta and stitching up the episiotomy. She stands up now. "You have a truly beautiful family, congratulations."

"Thanks," Charlotte and Cooper both reply.

"So, what's his name?" Addison asks.

Everyone looks at Andie and then Nicky, waiting. They wanted everyone to be surprised about the sex and the name they chose.

Nicky and Andie look at the baby.

"Meet Jack Alexander Poulos," Andie grins from ear to ear.

"I like it." Charlotte nods.

"How did you come up with that name?" Cooper asks.

Andie explains. "Alexander is from my first name, Alexandria, and we wanted something nice and simple for the first name. What's more simple than Jack?"

"I had a dog named Jack when I was a kid." Cooper informs them.

Charlotte nudges Cooper in the arm and scowls.

"What?" Cooper defends himself. "You wanted to name our first daughter after your dead horse that you had to shoot. I'm okay with Andie naming her third son after my dead dog."

Addison snickers before turning her attention back to Andie. "What name did you have picked out for a girl?" She asks Andie.

"A girl would have been Nicole Alexandria, after both Nicky and me."

"Oh well." Nicky smiles. "Next time."

Andie look up. "There isn't going to be a next time."

"We'll see." Nicky smirks.

Charlotte glares at Nicky. "Are you tryin' to kill my daughter?"

Everyone's minds go to Michelle now and how Grace-Anne's birth eight months ago was not a happy occasion like Jack's birth is.

"No ma'am." Nicky answers. "Jack Alexander will be our last."

* * *

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	95. Chapter 95

_**Chapter 95**_

* * *

Chase pulls the metal vase out of the ground in front of the headstone. He places the red roses in the vase before he pours water in it. After he sits down on the grass he gazes at the headstone. There's a picture of Michelle etched into the marble. She looks as beautiful as always. She's wearing a white, free flowing dress, her dark hair is blowing in the breeze. She looks like an angel. There's a caption that reads _Gone Too Soon_. "Ahhh," Chase tries his hardest to control tears from flowing.

He talks to the sketch on the headstone, "I brought you flowers. They're red roses, the kind with the long stems that you love. I should come visit more often but it's so damn hard for me to sit here and talk to you this way. You shouldn't be here. Sometimes…no…most of the time I think it's my fault you're here, if I only listened to you about adopting a baby this wouldn't have happened. I never thought I could lose you. It never crossed my mind anything like this could happen but it does and it happened to us…we were the unlucky ones." Chase continues. "I'm seeing a therapist about the guilt. Her name is Alexis. She recommended that I call Tess to get closure... you know how Tess just took off and I never got the talk to her about what happened with you. My therapist thinks I can't move on with my life until I get the answers to why she left so suddenly without giving me the chance to explain or even say sorry to her." Chase looks up. The sky's starting to get dark, storm clouds are moving in.

He looks back at the image of Michelle etched into the headstone. "The sky is about to open up and start pouring down on me so I'll make this visit quick but I'll be back with Grace-Anne next time. She's getting so big. She'll turn a year in a few months. I was thinking about having a birthday party for her but how can we celebrate that day if it's the anniversary of your death? I can't do that. Poor kid. Her birthday is always going to be the same day her momma died. I call it your angel day because that's the day you got your angel wings. Grace-Anne is going to have it hard struggling through life without you. But I don't want you to worry about that. My momma has been helping out and Ruby adores Grace-Anne. She's got plenty of ladies in her life. Andie just had another baby so she's been busy but I'm sure she'll be there for Grace when things settle down at her house. Anyway, I wonder what you'd think about me calling Tess. I don't know if you would be happy because I'd finally be getting closure with Tess or you'd be mad that I called her?"

Chase feels some rain drops on his face and hands. He continues to talk. "She didn't call me back yet. I called her dad and told him to have Tess call me. I don't know if her dad even gave her the message. The man doesn't exactly like me but it's possible he could have given Tess the message and she doesn't want to talk to me." Chase shakes his head. "I don't know. I wish you could talk to me. Should I call her dad again and pressure him to give me Tess's number or should I just leave it alone?

He looks up at the sky. "But I'll never have closure if I don't talk about it with her. I don't know what to do, Michelle."

The rain starts pouring down on him now, he wonders if it's some kind of sign and if it _is_ a sign, what does it mean? To call or not to call?

* * *

Ruby and Drew knock on the door of Andie's hospital room. "Come in!" Charlotte answers. She's holding the newborn in her arms while Andie's in the shower.

Ruby rushes over to them, gazing at the newborn. "Oh my goodness, he looks like a little doll." She places a gift wrapped box on the bed. "May I hold him?"

"Okay." Charlotte tells her. "Wash your hands first and sit in that chair. I'll hand him to you."

Ruby hurries to the sink to wash her hands.

"You might as well wash your hands too, Drew, if you plan on holding Mr. Jack, here." Charlotte looks down at her newest grandchild.

"I'm good." Drew sticks his hands in his pockets. "I'll just watch."

Ruby sits in the chair so Charlotte can carefully transfer the newborn into her arms. Andie comes out of the bathroom with a towel around her head. She sits in the bed and dries her hair.

"Congratulations," Ruby tells her. "He's beautiful."

"Thank you."

Ruby looks at Drew. "He feels so warm and mushy. I can't wait until I can hold our baby."

Drew raises his eyebrows at that comment. He can wait. This is all a bit scary to him.

Charlotte and Andie exchange glances with each other. Charlotte replies. "They grow fast, Ruby, he's not going to stay cute and cuddly long."

"Momma?" Andie admonishes. "What are you saying about Jack?"

"I'm sayin' they don't stay babies long. In a year he'll be walkin' and talkin' and in a few more years from now he'll be runnin' with the wrong crowd and makin' you worry."

"Momma?" Andie repeats. Charlotte shoots her a look and then Andie gets what her momma is doing.

Ruby replies. "Well, my baby won't be old enough for that stuff for a long time and by then Drew and I will have another cute cuddly baby."

Andie looks at Ruby kind of horrified. "You still have the first baby to look after until they're eighteen. You can't just say you're big now, I'll have a new baby."

Ruby shrugs her shoulders. "That's what my mum did. She and my stepfather had a baby a few years ago, that's when I came to live with my dad. I was fourteen."

Andie emphasizes to Ruby. "But that was _wrong_. What your momma did with you is wrong. A momma doesn't do that to any of her children. I would never send Harper away because she's eleven and I have Jack now. I'll be in Harper's life forever just like my momma is for me. That's normal, Ruby. What your momma did is not normal and it's not right."

"We should just have one baby." Drew stands up now, watching over Ruby with his hands in his pocket. "I'm good with one."

"Not me." Ruby tells Drew. "I was an only child and I was lonely. You have no idea, Drew, because you're one of four children. I'm not letting our baby grow up alone like me."

Charlotte sighs as she shakes her head. She has her work cut out for her. "I want you to talk to a friend of mine, Ruby."

"Who?"

"Her name is Alexis. She's a doctor, Chase talks to her."

Drew adds. "She's a shrink."

"Right." Charlotte nods.

"I don't need a shrink." Ruby scoffs.

"I'm not saying you're bonkers but you need to talk to someone about your momma." She looks at Ruby. "If you still wanna move into my house you'll need to speak with Alexis first. That's my only condition."

"Fine." Ruby sighs.

Charlotte leaves Ruby and Drew to visit with Andie and baby Jack while she meets Cooper for lunch in the hospital cafeteria.

"What's wrong?" Cooper notices something's up right away. "Are Andie and Jack okay?"

"They're fine." Charlotte groans out. She sits down in the chair across from Cooper.

"Then why do you look like you want to hit someone?"

"Ruby and Drew came up to see the baby."

Cooper shrugs. "Most people would think that's nice. It's a good thing, Chief."

"That girl got pregnant on purpose."

"What?" Cooper widens his eyes.

"She's excited about it. She can't wait to have the baby and she's already talking about having more. She doesn't behave like a teenage girl with an unexpected pregnancy. " Charlotte informs.

"She wouldn't be the first. A few years back a group of girls made a pact to get pregnant at the same time so they could play mommy together. Then, there are all those teen mom shows on TV. They think of babies like their cute little puppies."

"She tricked Drew." Charlotte shoots. "She did this on purpose. I know it."

"Does he know?" Cooper asks.

"He hasn't a clue and I'm not telling him; it'd break his heart if he knew she did this to him on purpose; he loves Ruby."

Cooper shakes his head while eating his salad.

Charlotte continues. "I feel bad for the kid, I'm talkin' about Ruby. She has abandonment issues with her own momma, she wants a baby to fill that void."

"She should talk to someone." Cooper suggests.

"I'm having her talk to Alexis. I told her that was the only way she could live with us."

"Good." Cooper nods. "Alexis can help her."

Charlotte sighs, jabbing her fork into her salad.

* * *

_**Review and have a lovely day =)**_


	96. Chapter 96

_**Chapter 96**_

* * *

Ruby knocks gently on the Chief of Staff's office. "Come in," a female voice calls out.

Ruby walks in rather sheepishly. She raises one hand halfway up to give a little wave. "How ya goin'? I'm Ruby Walker."

"I've been expecting you, Dr. King told me you were coming." Alexis rises to her feet, extending a hand to the teen. She can feel the nerves pouring out in Ruby's sweaty palm as they shake hands. "Have a seat, I'm Alexis." She decides to go with a first name basis to relax the already jittery teen.

Ruby looks around before settling down on the couch. She leans forward with her elbows on her knees. Her eyes dart around the new Chief of Staff's office, looking at the plaques on the wall. "You're really smart. You've earned a lot of degrees." Ruby comments.

"I studied and did what I had to do to get where I am." Alexis explains. "My mother was a single mom _and_ a doctor, ever since I was a little girl I wanted to be just like her so I studied hard." Alexis doesn't tell this to all her patients, it's a strategy she's using on Ruby to get her to ease into talking about her own mother.

"Is your mum still alive?" Ruby asks.

"Alive and kickin'." Alexis smiles, trying to make Ruby feel welcome in her office.

Ruby clears her throat. "Sorry, when you said she _was_ a doctor I though maybe…well you know."

"Oh." Alexis explains. "I said _was_ because she's retired now. I don't know what I would do without my mother. We've always been close. It was just the two of us until she married when I was fifteen. She and my step-father had my sister shortly after that."

Charlotte had filled Alexis in on Ruby's history so talking about her relationship with her own mom is the easiest strategy.

Ruby offers, "same thing with me except I was twelve when my mum got married to my step-father and had my sister."

"It seems we have something in common." Alexis smiles again trying to make Ruby an ally so she'll open up to her.

"Except you're still close to your mum. I haven't seen mine in two years since I moved to the states."

"Do you want to go back and visit with her?"

"No." Ruby shakes her head, firmly. "My mum changed after she married my stepfather. She's not interested in me anymore."

"Why do you think that is?" Alexis is trying to gage if this is just how Ruby is feeling or if her mother really is as neglectful as Ruby claims.

"My stepfather was never interested in me. He's wealthy... he would fly my mum all over the world on his business trips and vacations. I had to stay home with a nanny. I hardly saw my mum after she married him."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Alexis nods. "Did you ever talk to your mum about it? Did you tell her how you were feeling?"

"I did...she told me that she gave up her life to raise me when I was a baby and now that I was older it was her turn to live her life."

"Your mum actually said that to you?" Alexis puts her pen down to listen.

"Yes. She had me when she was eighteen. My parents broke up a few years later and my dad moved to the United States for his job. So, my mum raised me by herself until she married my stepfather when I was twelve. She was thirty years old then."

"Do you miss her?" Alexis writes in her chart.

Ruby becomes teary eyed, "I miss her heaps, but she's changed. When I was little she taught me to swim and surf. We lived near the ocean, she would take me out to surf whenever the weather permitted. She also taught me to ice skate. We were always together."

"I bet she misses you just as much as you miss her."

"No." Ruby shakes her head. "She has a new daughter with my stepfather. She doesn't need me anymore."

"But you're her first child. Think about this baby you're pregnant with. Would you ever turn it away because you had a new baby to play with?" Alexis waits for the answer.

"I don't think so, but how would I really know until the future? It's not even born yet."

"Having a child is a forever commitment, Ruby. You can't just keep the baby while they're small and cute and then forget about it and have another baby."

Ruby shrugs, "That's what my mum did."

"I haven't met your mom so I don't know what she thinks about the situation. The only way I'd know that is if I spoke to her. Would it be okay with you if I called your mum and talked to her? I have some questions I'd like to ask her."

"I don't care." Ruby shrugs. "And she won't either."

"Do you ever talk to your mum?"

"She calls on my birthday and Christmas, stuff like that."

"What does she say to you when she calls?"

"She says Happy Birthday and how are you, stuff like that and then she brags about Kerrin."

"Who's Kerrin?" Alexis asks.

"My little sister or my half sister, I should say. She's three years-old. My mum tells me everything that she did with Kerrin since she talked to me last. I actually hate it when my mum calls. I don't want to hear about how she's teaching Kerrin to surf and swim." Ruby folds her arms against her chest and pouts now. Alexis can see that she's starting to close up so she changes the direction of her conversation.

"How do you feel about _your_ baby?"

Ruby unfolds her arms and sits straight up now. "I love it already." She places her hand on her belly. "I can't wait until he or she is here."

"Aren't you nervous about taking care of a newborn?"

"Nope, and I'll have a lot of help. I'll be living with Drew and his family. His oldies are doctors, as you know."

"That's great but _you'll_ be the baby's mother. The ultimate responsibility for the baby will fall on you and Drew."

Ruby shrugs. "We'll be fine. We're excited about having this baby."

"Did you want a baby before you became pregnant?" Alexis asks.

Ruby avoids looking at Alexis now.

"Whatever you tell me is confidential. I can't tell anyone what we talk about. I could go to jail and be forced to pay a large fine if I told anyone what you tell me in this office." Alexis assures her. "I'm here to help you."

"So, if I tell you, that means you can't tell Dr. King?" Ruby asks.

"I could also lose my license if I do. There's a doctor-patient confidentiality rule I have to abide by and as you can see I'm Chief of Staff. I'm not about to risk losing my job or risk going to jail for breaking the rules."

"Okay, then." Ruby's relieved.

Alexis warns, "I have to tell you there are some exceptions to the confidentiality rule."

"There are?" Ruby looks up at Alexis.

"Yes, I'm obligated to report it if you tell me you want to hurt or kill yourself. It's for your protection. I'm also obligated to tell if you threaten to hurt or kill somebody else. I have an obligation to protect them too."

"I understand." Ruby nods. "I have no plans to hurt myself or anyone else."

"Since you're under 18, you're a minor and your parents are allowed access to your files. I can also tell your parents anything that I think is necessary for them to know for your benefit. I will tell you that I do not plan to tell your parents anything you say unless I think the only way to help you would be by telling them."

"Okay." Ruby nods.

"So, is there anything that you want to tell me?"

Ruby looks at the ground.

Alexis explains. "I'm a stranger, sometimes it's easier to talk to a stranger because they won't laugh at you or judge you. But you need to tell me everything if you want me to help you, no secrets."

Ruby nods again, looking at the ground.

"I want to help you, Ruby. I promise not to judge you."

Ruby swallows, keeping her head down. She raises the balls of her eyes to look at Alexis. She looks guilty as all hell. "I cut the condoms. I put slits in them with a scissor... I insisted on putting them on for Drew so he wouldn't notice, afterwards I made sure I threw them away so he couldn't find the slits later."

Alexis tries not to show a reaction. She waits a good fifteen seconds before asking, "Drew didn't suspect anything was up after you insisted on putting the condoms on for him?"

"Nope. I made it seem like I was having fun doing it. He doesn't suspect anything. He would think I was crazy if he knew." Ruby looks up at Alexis again." Please don't tell him or he'll hate me."

"Like I told you, I can't say anything...and Ruby, I do understand why you want a baby so bad." Alexis sympathizes to gain Ruby's trust.

"You do?" Ruby's surprised.

"Yes, I'm not saying I agree with it, but I understand it. You need someone to love you, someone that's not going to leave you like your mum did and possibly Drew."

Ruby smiles. "No wonder you have all those plaques on the wall."

"How do you feel about tricking Drew? Does it bother you at all?"

"I didn't want to trick him but he'd never agree to it. He'll be happy once the baby is born."

"And what if he's not?" Alexis questions. "What will you do if Drew can't handle the pressure of being a teen dad?"

"I'll do everything. Drew won't have to do anything." Ruby explains. "I'll feed the baby and change its diapers, Drew won't have to do anything."

"You make it sound so easy." Alexis comments. "But I know grown-ups who have trouble juggling the demands of a newborn. It's not as easy as you may think. Babies get sick, some get colic and cry all day and night. You'll have to go to school at the same time."

"I'm young, my baby should be healthy." Ruby responds.

Alexis wants to make Ruby think. "You'll be extremely lucky if you get an easy-going baby who never picks up a virus or has a painful ear infection."

Ruby looks at the ground. "I guess I haven't thought about any of that. I just imagined life will be great with a baby. I don't know what I'll do if the baby gives me grief and cries all the time or is sickly."

"I want to help you, Ruby, but I need to talk to your mother first. It'll help me have a better understanding of you, of what your life has been like. We'll meet again next week, okay?"

"Okay." Ruby pulls out her phone to give Alexis the phone number for her mum.

* * *

Chase calls Tess's father again. "Hello Mr. Powers. This is Chase Freedman."

"Hello young man, what can I do for you today?"

"Did you give Tess the message to call me? I haven't heard from her yet."

"Oh shucks! I forgot all about that and I just talked to her this morning. It's Brayden's fourth birthday so I called them."

"Can you call her again and ask her to call me? It's kind of important that we talk about things."

"Tess and Damien were taking Brayden out to some amusement park for his birthday but I'll put a note by my phone reminding me to tell Tess to call you the next time I talk to her."

"When will that be?" Chase asks.

"I don't know. She calls when she calls. There's no predicting it. Could be tomorrow, could be a week."

"Can I have her number?"

"I have strict instructions from Damien not to give you their numbers." Tess's father laughs. "And I don't want to rumble with him if you know what I mean. He's a big guy."

"I know about that. Don't forget to tell Tess to call me" Chase hangs up. He thinks about it being her son's birthday today. He does the calculation just for the hell of it. If today is Brayden's birthday Tess would have already been a few weeks pregnant before she left LA but then again it's possible she could have got pregnant soon after she arrived in Georgia and Brayden could have been born early. He considers the possibility that Tess's son could be his but shakes the thought off, Tess would never lie to him about something like that. Tess knew how bad he wanted to be a dad, that's why they were having the problems they were having at the time. She would never keep him away from his son, he thinks.

* * *

_**Review and have a lovely day , ya'll. =)**_


	97. Chapter 97

_**CHAPTER 97**_

* * *

Charlotte sits in the exam room at Surfside Wellness with Ruby and Drew, waiting for Addison to come in. Ruby's sitting on the exam table, sporting a pink patient gown.

"I can't wait to see the baby." Ruby looks at the ultrasound machine.

"You do know Addison needs to examine you first." Charlotte informs the sixteen year old.

"What is she going to do to me?"

"Have you ever been to an Ob-Gyn for a check up before?"

"No." Ruby shakes her head from side to side. "Will it hurt?"

"Everything's going to be fine," Charlotte assures, quietly, and not quite convincingly.

Drew sits in a chair in the corner of the room, looking like he'd rather be anywhere but here right now.

Addison walks in, "Good morning," she greets, glancing at the chart in her hand.

"Thanks for taking on Ruby as a patient." Charlotte swallows hard, she's wondering what Addison must think about this being the second teenage pregnancy in her family.

"Of course." Addison smiles at Charlotte and then Ruby. "Your family is keeping my mind sharp with all the babies. How's Andie doing with little Jack?"

"They're settling in well at home."

"Five kids." Addison lets out a breath. "That house must be crazy."

"They have a nanny so it's not too bad." Charlotte replies.

"I meant crazy in a good way." Addison wants to make sure Charlotte didn't take it wrong.

"I knew it." Charlotte nods.

"How's Chase doing with Grace-Anne?" Addison washes her hands before getting started with Ruby.

"Great." Charlotte watches Addison scrub up.

"She'll be a year soon." Addison dries off her hands with a paper towel. "Is he going to have a party for her?"

Charlotte exhales. "I don't know. Grace-Anne's first birthday will be the first anniversary of Michelle's death so…we haven't talked about it."

With that the room gets quiet. Addison pulls on a pair of gloves. "Are you ready, Ruby?"

"I just wanna get this part over with." Ruby's nerves are showing.

Drew stands up from his chair. "I'll wait outside for this part. Call me before you do the ultrasound."

Ruby watches Drew leave the room before asking Addison. "Is this really necessary? You saw I was pregnant from the blood work. Why can't we just do an ultrasound and skip the exam?"

Addison explains. "I need to check your cervix and make sure everything is as it's supposed to be. I should also do a breast exam as part of the exam."

"I don't want that." Ruby protests. "Isn't it my right to refuse? It's my body."

Addison looks at Charlotte. "If your parent or guardian signs the paperwork saying you refuse then I can't do the breast exam."

Charlotte tells Addison. "Ruby's father appointed me her guardian since he's away." Charlotte takes the signed papers out of her purse to show Addison.

Ruby looks up at Charlotte "Can you sign the refusal papers? I only want a sonogram"

Charlotte tells Ruby, "you're going to need the pelvic exam done because your pregnant but we can skip the breast exam today."

Addison tells Ruby, "you should get in the habit of doing breast exams once a month. Do you want me to show you how?"

"No thanks, I'll pass."

"So, just a pelvic today." Addison pulls a stool up to the end of the exam table.

"Can you make it quick?" Ruby complains, nervously."I don't like this."

"Okay." Addison nods and asks Ruby to scoot to the bottom of the table and raise up her knees.

Ruby does it, hesitantly. It's clear she's uncomfortable.

Charlotte's standing next to her, she grabs the teens hand. "Better get used to it, kid. You'll need to see Addison once a month while your pregnant."

"But," Addison looks at Ruby. "I only need to do an internal today. I won't do another internal until the third trimester to check if you're cervix is dilating for labor."

"Good." Ruby breathes a sigh of relief. "Let's get it over with, shall we?"

Addison gels up the speculum. "I'm going to insert the speculum now." Addison holds up the tool to show her.

"Will it hurt?"

"No, but you will feel some pressure."

Ruby swallows hard and begins to tremble a little at the experience. Charlotte notices the teen is shaky and squeezes her hand tight. "It's okay, it won't take long."

"I wish I was a boy." Ruby tells them. "The boys have the easy part and they get to wait outside."

"This is true." Charlotte holds her hand.

"Everything looks good." Addison tells her. "Your cervix is completely closed and everything else looks perfect."

"You're done already?" Ruby looks pointedly at Addison as she pulls out the speculum.

"With that part, now we get to do the fun part. We get to see the baby." Addison puts the speculum in the discard bin and pulls over the ultrasound machine.

"Yay!" Ruby smiles from ear to ear now. Charlotte and Addison exchange a quick glance with one another, realizing how much of a child Ruby still is. It also doesn't escape Addison that this teen is very excited about seeing her baby.

"I'll get Drew." Charlotte lets go of Ruby's hand and opens the door to call Drew in.

Drew shuffles in with his hand in his pockets. "How did it go?" He asks.

Ruby answers. "It wasn't so bad. It went a lot quicker than I thought it would."

"That's good." Drew stands at her side now while Addison wheels the ultrasound monitor over to them.

Drew's nervous, he doesn't know what to expect until Addison presses the ultrasound wand to Ruby's belly, and a quick lub-dup-lub-dup echoes throughout the room. Drew's jaw drops, he's never heard anything like it in his sixteen years. "Wow!" he exclaims. "Is that the baby's heartbeat?"

"It is." Charlotte nods, smiling. She's certainly not thrilled about this teenage pregnancy but the sound of this new innocent life's heart beating brings a smile to her face. She stares at the ultrasound machine. Her baby boy is having a baby and there it is right on the monitor.

Ruby's excited, "Is it a girl or a boy?"

"It's a little too early for that." Addison responds. "We can't accurately tell the sex until you're 18 weeks along but everything is right on target for your dates. You're about nine weeks pregnant."

"Nine weeks already?" Ruby questions.

"We start counting from two weeks before your last period because that's when the egg starts to develop, so you're seven weeks from conception but nine weeks pregnant."

"That's awesome." Ruby announces. "That means the baby will be born sooner than I expected."

Addison pulls out a chart. "Let's look up your due date."

"The easiest way is to count back three months from your last period and add a week."

Ruby calculates in her head. "That would be April 21 st."

Addison looks at her chart. "Yep, an April baby it is."

Ruby smiles. "I can't wait for spring to come."

"So what do we do now?" Drew asks Addison. "Is there anything Ruby should be doing or not be doing to make sure the baby is healthy?"

Charlotte looks at her son. She's a little surprised he's taking more of an interest than he has before but that's probably because now that he's heard the heartbeat and seen the ultrasound the baby has become real, - a real living human.

Addison tells him. "Ruby needs to take her pre-natal vitamins and continue to eat healthy. I read in your chart that you were a smoker?" She asks Ruby.

"I gave that up as soon as I knew I was pregnant." Ruby informs, proudly.

"Good, smoking can cause low birth weight so don't do it." Addison warns.

"I won't." Ruby nods.

"Other than that, do everything as you normally would." Addison tells Ruby. "Pregnancy is not as illness. You can carry on with your normal routines like going to school and doing whatever you did before."

Drew wants to ask Addison if they can still have sex but his momma is standing right there and right now he wishes she weren't but he goes for it. "Are people still able to you know…Uhm…" He tries to find the right words. His face flushes because his momma is staring at him, waiting to see what he wants to know. He tries again. He clears his throat. "Are people...?" Drew looks at his momma again. "Uhm...nevermind."

Addison knows what he's too embarrassed to ask. "And, just so you know, intercourse won't harm the baby. The baby has natural protection."

"How?" Ruby asks.

"A pregnant woman forms a mucous plug in her cervix which prevents bacteria or anything else from getting up into the uterus. That's one of the things I was checking for in the exam. The baby is also protected by a cushion of fluid. We call it the amniotic sac."

"Like it's own protective cocoon?" Drew asks.

"Something like that." Addison nods.

"That's good." Ruby tells Drew. "so we have nothing to worry about."

Charlotte glares at her son.

"Sorry, momma." Drew looks at Ruby as he talks. "But it's obvious that Ruby and I have already done the horizontal hoola."

"Indeed." Charlotte replies, still glaring.

"Ruby's already pregnant so why should we stop now?" Drew shrugs.

"You won't be doin' _the horizontal hoola_ under my roof." Charlotte warns him.

"I'm going to leave you alone to talk. I'll see you again in one month, Ruby." Addison walks out of the room with the chart.

Charlotte folds her arms together and looks back and forth between Ruby and Drew. "If you both want to live under my roof there are rules to be followed."

"I already met with Alexis." Ruby volunteers. "I'm meeting with her again next week."

Charlotte instructs them. "I meant you'll be staying in separate bedrooms and you won't be sneaking into each other's rooms in the middle of the night."

"You already told us that, momma." Drew rolls his eyes.

"And there will be no horizontal hoola-ing. Is that clear?"

"It clear." Drew gives Ruby a sly grin. They'll find a way to be together. She flashes a grin back to him before heading into the bathroom to change.

* * *

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	98. Chapter 98

_**CHAPTER 98**_

* * *

Chase is standing outside on the back deck of the house he shared with Michelle. Charlotte's inside packing boxes. She observes Chase through the sliding glass doors. She wonders when he's going to come back inside to help her clean the house out of Michelle's things. So far, she's done all the work. She brought along over a dozen large boxes to sort out clothes and items to donate. There's a box of jewelry and other items she thinks Chase may want to keep for Grace-Anne, and she'd rather he came in and helped her with the task.

Chase stands on the deck, looking over the railing. He gazes out at the large yard, still trying to process everything. He originally bought this house with Tess because of the large yard, in hopes they would have half a dozen kids one day to fill it up with. Then it was him and Michelle; their dream of having a family was just coming true when it was all shot to hell in a hand basket. Charlotte watches him; her heart breaks for her oldest son. How did it all come to this?

Charlotte slides open the glass door, "Chase?" Charlotte steps outside onto the deck. "Are you okay?"

"I'm okay. I'm just thinking about things." Chase replies.

She puts her arm around his back. "It'll get easier once we get this place cleaned out. You'll be able to make it a nice home for Grace-Anne to grow up in."

Chase blurts out. "I'm thinking about selling it and starting new somewhere else."

"Where?" Charlotte starts to panic a little, thinking he wants to leave LA.

"Just a new house, momma. I'm not leaving town." He knows what his momma was thinking.

"Good. Ya' scared me there for a minute."

"I want to keep Grace-Anne close to you and dad. She doesn't have a momma, she needs all the family she has left."

Charlotte looks in through the glass door at the boxes of Michelle's clothes. She doesn't feel like this is the right moment to her son that he's young and he'll find love again. Heck, she didn't meet Cooper and get married until she was in her thirties. There's still hope Chase can find a wonderful step-momma for Grace-Anne. She looks at Michelle's things packed up and keeps the comments to herself. She plans to have this conversation with him but not today, not when they're cleaning his house out of Michelle's belongings.

"This is the first time I've been back here in nine months." Chase tells his momma. "The last time I was here was the night I took her to the hospital."

"I know." Charlotte nods. "But you're here now... baby steps; it'll get easier every time you come back. I already packed up most of her personal stuff for you. I assume you want to keep the furniture?" Charlotte asks.

Chase nods. "Most of this furniture I bought with Tess after we bought the house."

"There certainly are a lot of memories in this house. Are you sure you want to sell it?"

"I don't know." Chase shrugs. "I don't know anything anymore." He rubs his hand over his head.

"Maybe you should talk to Alexis again, and try to sort out your feelings about keepin' or sellin'."

Chase nods.

Charlotte takes a deep breath. "Okay. Help me carry these boxes out to the rental truck before we leave." Charlotte takes Chase's hand to lead him into the house.

"Did you clean out the attic yet, momma?"

"No." Charlotte glances at the ten large boxes she packed up. "I didn't get to it. Contrary to popular belief, I'm not Superwoman." She smiles.

Chase smiles back. "Hold on a minute, momma. I have to run up to the attic to get something before we leave." Chase climbs up the attic stairs followed by Charlotte. "I'm looking for a wooden box with Michelle's name printed on it."

"How big a box are we looking for?" Charlotte looks around the attic

"Medium size." Chase looks around with her.

After about five minutes of searching, Charlotte calls out. "Found it!" She pulls the box out from behind an old file cabinet. "It says '_Michelle_' on it but it's locked."

"I have the key at home. Michelle left me something in there to read if she died."

"Some kind of will?" Charlotte furrows her brow with curiosity.

"I don't think so." Chase shrugs. "I won't know until I read it." He's not too worried about the paternity of his daughter anymore, if Benn is the father he has no interest in Grace-Anne. He's never stopped by to see her or called Chase asking about her. He thinks he's ready to open the box once they get home.

* * *

Cooper's babysitting Andie and Nicky's oldest four kids while Andie takes Jack for his well baby visit.

"Grandpa, I've decided," Charley, the nearly seven-year old boy with red hair, tells him as he pulls a game off the shelf, knocking three more onto the floor.

"I see that." Cooper watches the board games crash onto the floor.

"Yep. I want Pictionary Jr." He carries the box over to the game table in the playroom.

"You do know that you have to clean that mess up before I sit down to play _anything_ with you."

"Let the nanny get it." Charley shrugs.

"It's the nanny's day off, besides _you_ made the mess, so you need to clean it up."

Charley lifts his chin up to look into Cooper's eyes. "My momma said you were the nice one."

"Come again?" Cooper looks at his grandson.

"My momma said Nan was the strict one who made them do stuff when she was little but you were the nice one. How come you're not being nice to me?"

"I _am_ being nice by teaching you responsibility." Cooper replies. "You'll thank me when you're older."

"Stop! NO! Leave me alone!" Cooper hears Hope shrieking from the kitchen.

"Be quiet!" Harper has Hope by one arm and is dragging her to the sink with the other.

"What's goin' on here?" Cooper asks.

"She got into momma's lipstick. She looks like a crazy clown." Harper turns the sink on and tries to stick Hope's face under the faucet.

"That's not the way to clean it off." Cooper admonishes Harper. "Get a wet wash cloth." Cooper sighs. "Never mind, I'll do it myself. Go help Charley clean the playroom."

"Why do I halfta?" Twelve year old Harper complains. "You're the babysitter, and I'm doing all the work."

"Because I'm teaching you about responsibility." Cooper calls after his granddaughter. He runs a wash cloth over Hope's mouth. "Where did you get your momma's lipstick?" He asks.

"Harper had it in her room. She puts in on whenever momma's not home."

"Kids," Cooper mutters as he scrubs the red lipstick off the almost four year old's mouth.

"Grandpa!" Harper yells out from the playroom. "Michael Nikolas is eating a jar of maraschino cherries!"

"Take the jar away from him!" Cooper calls back to her before grumbling to himself. "That's all I need now is Michael hyped up on sugar."

"I can't!" Harper calls back. "I'm helping Charley pick up all these game pieces and sort them back into the right boxes."

Cooper exhales and hurries back into the playroom. He grabs the jar of cherries away from Michael.

"Hey, those is mine, Grandpa! " The five year old miniature version on Nicky exclaims.

"Not anymore." Cooper pops a cherry in his mouth. "They're mine now."

"You're crazy, grandpa." Harper watches Cooper popping the cherries into his mouth while Michael Nikolas scowls.

"You kids are the crazy ones." Cooper jokes. "I can't leave you alone for ten seconds without one of you getting into some sort of trouble."

"I'm telling my momma you called us crazy kids!" Michael Nikolas yells at Cooper.

Cooper smiles, joking with Michael. "Did you forget I'm your momma's daddy? I taught her everything she knows."

"But she's all grown up now." Harper reminds.

"I can still spank her if I want." Cooper teases.

"No, you can't." Harper tells Cooper.

Andie walks in the playroom, holding baby Jack. "How did it go? Were you guys good for grandpa this afternoon?"

"Momma, I was good," Michael tells his momma, "but grandpa stole my snack and he's eating it." Michael Nikolas points to Cooper who's munching on the cherries.

Andie looks at Cooper. "Dad, those aren't for snack. I buy them for Nicky when he makes a drink and for the kids ice cream sundaes."

Harper calls out, "can grandpa still spank you? He said even though you're an adult he can still spank you."

Andie looks at Cooper. "You never spanked me as a child. Why are you telling the kids that?"

Before Cooper can answer Charley chimes in. "Grandpa said we were crazy kids."

Andie looks at Cooper. "Why'd you say that, dad?"

Cooper smirks. "Let's just say I feel sorry for that nanny of yours. You should pay her more."

"We pay her well." Andie shakes her head. "You've just been out of it too long, dad. Our house was pretty crazy too when I was a kid."

"I know." Cooper sits on the playroom couch. "I loved every minute of it, and as chaotic as it might have been, I miss it." He pops another cherry into his mouth.

Andie hands him baby Jack to hold. "You're welcome to come here anytime and help out with my _crazy brood."_

"Thank you, Andie Candy." Cooper winks at his daughter.

* * *

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_**Hope y'all have a wonderful day! =)**_


	99. Chapter 99

_**Chapter 99**_

* * *

"So, how was your day?" Charlotte asks him, sprawled next to him, still naked.

"Crazy." Cooper snickers.

"The kids kept you hoppin', huh?"

"I pity their nanny." He pulls her closer.

She turns on her side to face him. "You love 'em" she smiles. "The crazier they are the better."

He kisses the top of her head. "Thank you."

"For what? The sex?" She swats his arm gently while wrinkling her brow.

He chuckles at that. "That's not what I meant but thank you for that too." He grins.

"What else in this world could you be thanking me for, Coop? We haven't even got out of bed yet."

"I'm thanking you for giving me this crazy and wonderful family we have. I couldn't have done any of it without you."

She smirks, tapping his shoulder with one finger. "So, basically you _are_ thanking me for the sex cuz we couldn't have made this crazy, wonderful family without it."

"True." Cooper nods. "You've got a point there. So, thank you for the sex."

"And, thank you," she yawns before resting her head back down on his chest.

He lowers his eyes to watch her. "How was your day?"

"Not as good as yours." She rubs a small circle over his chest with her finger.

"Didn't get much packing done at Chase's house?" He asks.

"Oh, _I_ got a lot done. I packed up ten boxes of clothing and other items while Chase stood outside on the back deck daydreaming about his life."

"You should've waited until tomorrow. I would have helped you pack."

Charlotte glances up at him. "Chase wanted to go back there today. Gotta do it while the iron's hot. Who knows if he'd change his mind again and not want to go back for another nine months."

"True." He nods. "Chase didn't help you at all?"

"It's hard for him to be there but he did go with me up to the attic to look for a box with Michelle's name on it."

"What's in the box?"

"I don't know." She shrugs. "But it must be important. He took it up to his room."

* * *

Chase gently pats Grace-Anne's on her back until she settles down for the night. After he's sure she's asleep, he tip toes out of her nursery and down to his room at his parent's house. He's been staying here for the past nine months since Michelle died. He saunters into his room and stretches out on the bed. He flips on the the television with his remote. That's when the wooden box sitting near the television catches his eye. He gets out of bed and brings it back with him before running his fingers over the letters. He blows off some dust and gazes down at Michelle's name. He wonders what this letter in the box could be about. He's nervous, but he's ready. He feels a knot forming in his stomach. He pulls open his bedside drawer and takes out her keyring. He kept it safe there for a few reasons. Her car keys are on there, the keys to their house and of course the key to the box, like she told him before she died.

He sighs heavily before placing the key in the lock. He feels the butterflies in his stomach now. He's actually afraid to read the contents of the letter. She told him not to hate her for what's in the letter and she begged him to forgive her for it. She must have cheated on him. That's the only thing he can come up with. What else would he need to forgive her for? He crosses his fingers hoping the letter isn't going to say he's not Grace-Anne's biological father. He stops a few seconds to think; he's Grace-Anne's father now no matter what. Benn isn't interested in being a father to her.

Chase looks up at the ceiling. "I forgive you Michelle, no matter what you did. I could never hate you, you gave me the best gift in the world;our daughter." He turns the key and opens the lid of the box, the white business style envelope is lying on top. His name is penned on the front of the envelope in blue ink, but it's not Michelle's handwriting. The handwriting looks familiar though. He picks up the envelope and brings it closer. That's definitely Tess's handwriting. Why would there be a letter from Tess in Michelle's box? Chase rips it open and pulls the folded paper out. Two ultrasound photos fall onto his lap. He picks up the photos to look at them, they're clearly of an early pregnancy. He reads the name printed in the upper left corner -Tess Powers. The photos are dated five years ago and now he knows. He knows why Michelle asked him not to hate her and to forgive her. He knows Brayden is his son now. He doesn't need to read the letter but he will.

_Dear Chase-_

_CONGRATULATIONS! You're going to be a daddy. These are ultrasound photos of our baby. I'm leaving this letter since I can't talk to you yet. My head is spinning with questions. Do you still love me? Did you ever love me? How long have you been cheating on me? Were there others? Have you been playing me for a fool the entire time we dated or did you change? When did you change? I had no idea. The Chase I knew and loved would never cheat on me. The Chase I knew and loved was an honest man but maybe I never knew you. In any case, I am pregnant with your child so we will need to work something out. If you're willing to answer my questions and discuss raising our child together meet me at Giorgio's this Friday night at 8pm. If not, I plan to leave town and raise the baby on my own. I'm not strong enough to sit by and watch you with your nurse lover. I hope to see you at Giorgio's but if not then...- Tess_

Chase reads the letter again and again and again. This is mind-blowing. He has a son! He needs to tell someone. He rushes into his parents room without knocking. Charlotte and Cooper look up surprised as he bursts through the door in his excitement. "I have a son!" He blurts out. "Tess's little boy is mine, not Damien's. He's my son!"

Charlotte pulls up the sheet to make sure it's completely covering her naked body. "How do you know?"

Cooper tugs the sheet back because she exposed him now when she pulled the sheet. They're having a bit of a tug of war over the sheet when Chase sits on the bed next to Charlotte.

"Do you mind?" Cooper asks.

"Read this." Chase shoves the letter into Charlotte's hands.

Charlotte reads it while Cooper reads over her shoulder. "WOW!" Cooper says when he finishes reading.

"Congratualtions, five years later." Chase hands them each an ultrasound photo. "You're grandparents again."

"Where did you get this letter and these photos?" Charlotte asks, astonished, looking at the ultrasound photo of Brayden in her hand.

"They were in Michelle's box, the one we took home from my house today."

"Why would they be in Michelle's box?" Cooper asks, a bit confused.

Charlotte explains. "Obviously, Michelle got to the letter before Chase and kept it from him."

"That's…-" Cooper stops his sentence short. He doesn't want to speak bad of the dead.

Chase defends Michelle. "Before she died, Michelle told me there was a letter in the box; she wanted me to read it. She wanted me to know. She begged me to forgive her and not to hate her for it before they took her to the OR."

"That was nine months ago. Why did you wait so long to open it?" Cooper asks.

Chase sighs. "I was afraid. I didn't want to know what was in the letter but this is great. This is great news. I have a son!"

"If Tess will let you see him." Charlotte reminds. "The boy thinks that Damien is his father."

"I'm calling Tess's father again. I'm going to demand to talk to Tess or I'll take it to the authorities. I want to know my son. I'm his father, not Damien."

Cooper rests his hand on Chase's shoulder. "We'll help you with whatever you need. We're right behind you all the way."

Chase grins. "I'll let you get back to what you were doing." He rises to his feet. "I couldn't keep this to myself. I want to tell the world I have a son. Grace-Anne has a brother!"

"Congratulations!' Charlotte smiles.

"Five years later." Cooper reminds.

"Now scram." Charlotte teases.

After Chase leaves, Cooper pulls Charlotte on top of him. "Congratulations again, grandma. We have another grandchild."

"This one makes seven." Charlotte calculates.

"And Ruby and Drew's baby will make eight." Cooper adds.

"We have eight grandchildren already and Noah and Marley haven't even gotten started yet."

"I love our crazy family." Cooper raises his eyebrows. "How about we celebrate?"

"You got it, gramps." Charlotte smirks before locking lips with him.

* * *

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	100. Chapter 100

_**CHAPTER 100**_

* * *

Tess stirs the sauce on the stove while Damien watches the Atlanta Braves game with Brayden.

"Homerun!" Damien jumps up off the couch. He picks up Brayden and swings him in the air. The four year old boy laughs. "Did you see that Bray-Bud? The Braves scored a homerun. That's what we wanna see!"

"Squeeee!" Brayden laughs as Damien lifts him onto his shoulders and walks into the kitchen.

"What's the score?" Tess asks.

"Braves are winning 6-2"

"Awesome." Tess high fives both Brayden and Damien.

"That's all I get." Damien pulls her in tight for a delicious hug.

"Kid in the room." Tess lifts her eyes up, reminding Damien that Brayden is towering above them on his shoulders.

"We'll celebrate later then." He swats Tess on the bottom.

She holds the spoon in front of his mouth so he can taste the sauce. "How is it?" She asks.

"Good stuff." He slurps it down.

She licks off the spoon. "I'm getting better at this cooking thing since I have you and Brayden to cook for. Before, I was too busy with medical school and then my residency to learn how to cook."

He lifts Brayden off his shoulders and puts him back down on the ground. "Go kiddo! Tell me when the game comes back on." He swats Brayden playfully on the bottom.

"Okay, daddy." Brayden runs back into the living room.

"You ever consider going back and finishing up your residency?" Damien scoops the spoon back in the pot for another taste.

She swats his hand away. "Save some for dinner."

He licks the spoon. "You didn't answer my question."

She puts the cover back on the pot and turns around to face him. "I plan on looking into it when Brayden goes to kindergarten next year. I'll have more free time while he's in kindergarten." Tess pours herself a glass of sweet tea. "You want some?" She asks.

He sips hers and scowls. "It's like drinking a glass of sugar. How can you drink that stuff?"

"I was raised in the south; I grew up on this stuff."

"I was raised in LA and you get your ice tea either sweetened or unsweetened but our sweetened tea doesn't contain a bucket of sugar like yours in the south."

Tess laughs. "Well, at least we turned you into an Atlanta Braves fan."

"The game's back on, daddy!" Brayden calls out.

"Coming, Bray-Bud!" Damien grabs a beer out of the fridge and heads back to the living room. Tess follows him and plops down on the couch with her sweet tea to watch the game. Brayden climbs onto Damien's lap with his Atlanta Braves cap on. Tess watches them and gives a little smile. Her land line phone rings. She goes into the kitchen to answer it.

"Hey, dad. You're a little early for your Sunday night call."

"Chase Freedman called me."

Tess sighs hard. "What does he want now?"

"He wants to talk to you about Brayden?"

"What?" Tess screws up her face. "Why now? He wanted nothing to do with Brayden once he hooked up with his supermodel nurse Michelle?"

"He said to tell you he got your letter."

"What letter? I didn't send him a letter." Tess tells her father.

"I don't know. He told me to tell you he just read the letter and it's important you call him to discuss Brayden."

Tess is quiet for a minute. Is it possible he's talking about the letter she left him five years ago? She hasn't sent him any letters since she left LA.

"Tess?" Her father asks. "Are you still there?"

"I'm here."

"I think you should call him and find out what he means about this letter. It seems very important to Chase."

Tess nods. "I'll call him." She looks at Brayden sitting on Damien's lap in the living room watching the game. "Just not tonight; tonight's not a good night."

"Can I give him your number the next time he calls? He keeps asking me for your number."

"No," Tess shakes her head. "Don't give it to him. Tell him _I'll_ call _him_."

"Okay. Go eat your dinner or whatever you were doing. I'll call you back tonight right on schedule."

"Okay, dad, I love you."

"Love you too, Tessie bug."

Tess hangs up and strolls back into the living room. She sits down next to Damien and picks up her sweet tea.

"Who was on the phone?" Damien asks.

"My dad."

Damien looks at his watch. "Isn't it a little early for his Sunday night call?"

"He's old." Tess shrugs. "People lose track of time when they're old."

Damien sips his beer and watches the game. Tess stares at the television but she's not thinking about the game. She's thinking about the letter she wrote to Chase five years ago. She tries to remember what exactly it said besides '_Congrats, you're going to be a daddy._' She remembers sitting at Giorgio's waiting for him to show up that Friday night and how she cried herself to sleep for months after he didn't show. She remembers feeling betrayed; she thinks back to walking in on him and Michelle having sex in his office. She shakes her head now thinking about him with his bimbo wife Michelle. She remembers seeing his baby at the park with Ruby and, she thinks of him and Michelle raising their baby girl together. She's not calling tonight. She'll call, but it'll be on her terms now. She'll call when she's good and ready to see what he wants with Brayden after all these years. As far as Brayden's knows, Damien is his daddy. Tess swallows hard and turns her attention back to the ball game. She smiles as Damien teaches Brayden to do the Victory Dance when their team scores another point.

* * *

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	101. Chapter 101

_**CHAPTER 101**_

* * *

Chase walks along the headstones until he finds hers. He can count the amount of times he's come here in the past nine months on his left hand; it's hard. He recognizes her headstone from several feet away. It's marble and has a sketch of her etched into it. He kneels down in front of it. "Hey sweetheart." He whispers, as he traces the sketch with his finger. "I forgive you; I could never hate you. You gave me Grace-Anne."

He sits down on his bottom, wrapping his arms around his knees. "Thank you for telling me about letter before you died." He hesitates. "I waited so long…I put it off. I thought of different scenarios of what could be in that letter. I thought it was going to say Grace-Anne was Benn's daughter…that's the real reason I didn't open it sooner; if that was the case I didn't want to know about it."

Chase swallows hard. "I saw my son a few months back at the park when Tess came for her father's birthday. He calls Damien daddy. I hate that jerk, Damien. The thought of a guy like that raising my son makes me want to….I don't know…It makes me so mad. I'm waiting for Tess to call me back. I don't know how it's going to work with her and Damien living in Georgia with my son and me being here but I want to know him and I want Grace-Anne to know her big brother."

He wipes away a tear rolling down his cheek. "I've made a decision to forgive you. Maybe it's because I can still hear the desperation in your voice when you told me about the letter before they took you to the OR. You wanted me to know I had a son. What I'm not sure of is why you didn't tell me earlier. I guess I'll never know the answer to that."

He traces her sketch again. "Grace-Anne is beautiful just like you, I could never hate her momma. I wanna be able to talk fondly of you to Grace-Anne, not be poisoned by hate, so I forgive you." He kisses the headstone before rising to his feet. "Goodbye Michelle."

* * *

Drew sits with Ruby in the high school cafeteria for lunch. "What's wrong?" He asks.

"Why?" She shrugs. "What do you mean?"

"You haven't touched a thing on your plate, are you sick?"

"No, it's not that. I just don't want to gain weight; my pants are starting to get tight. I could barely button them this morning. The button's digging into my stomach."

He says just above a whisper, looking around to make sure nobody's in earshot. "That's because you're pregnant. Your stomach will get bigger whether you eat or not."

Ruby looks around before informing Drew, "I'm not gonna come to school when it's obvious."

"You can't drop out."

"Remember Lily Flanders? She was that senior last year who came to school pregnant?" Ruby asks.

"I remember her." Drew bites into his sandwich.

"Everyone gossiped about her behind her back. They called her a slut because she got pregnant, and the nice ones smiled to her face but whispered about her as soon as she turned her head the other way; that's not happening to me."

"You can't drop out, Ruby."

"I'm not going to school when I look pregnant."

"I have and idea. Let's talk to my sister after school today. She went through the same thing when she was in high school. Maybe she can give you some tips; she hid it from everyone even my parents for a long time."

Ruby's eyes light up now. "Really? It's possible that nobody at school will have to know?"

"Just talk to my sister, she'll give you some tips."

"Okay." Ruby picks up her sandwich.

* * *

Charlotte sits next to Cooper at the park while he bounces Grace-Anne on his lap. They watch four year old Hope run around with some playmates on the jungle-gym nearby. Andie's home with baby Jack Alexander while Harper, Charley and Michael are at school.

"I can't believe their nanny would just quit on them like that." Charlotte watches Hope run to the slide.

"I can." Cooper smirks. He hands baby Grace a biscuit to chomp on with her new baby teeth. She drools on his hand. "I wonder how long it'll take them to find another nanny?" Cooper wipes the drool on the leg of his pants.

Charlotte watches him. "Hopefully soon."

"They need Nanny McPhee to pop in on them."

Charlotte responds, "they don't need Nanny McPhee or Mary Poppins; they've got us." Charlotte gives him a little smile before shifting her gaze back to Hope. She can see him starin' at her out of the corner of her eye. "What, Cooper?"

"What?" He returns.

She looks straight ahead at Hope. "You're starin'. Do I have something on my face?"

"If you must know…I was thinking of how lucky I am to have you. I couldn't be a luckier man."

She rolls her eyes. "Do you know how corny that sounds?"

"Ah, but you love it." He steals a quick kiss from her lips. "You love it when I'm corny."

"Stop it." She smiles, turning her face away from him. "We're s'posed to be babysittin'."

"I'm not stopping until you admit you love it." He steals another kiss.

"Not happening." She smiles, turning away from him to watch Hope playing.

"Admit it." He leans in again.

"Fine. I'll admit it but just because you're makin' a scene." She looks at her granddaughter chewing a biscuit on Cooper's lap. "Grace-Anne is lookin' at us funny."

"Say _'I love you even when you're corny'_." He grins from ear to ear. "Say it or I'll kiss you again in front of everyone at this park and this time I'll use my tongue."

"Fine." She reluctantly agrees. "I love you even when you're corny but you're in some serious trouble when we get home." She turns her head back to watch Hope play. She's smiling because he's right, after all these years he knows how to read her to a - T. It's bothersome sometimes, she can't seem to have any of her own thoughts without him reading her mind.

"We're lucky." He tells her, bouncing Grace-Anne on his lap.

"We've certainly've been blessed." She looks at him and smiles. She might as well admit how happy she is; he knows it anyway. "I should write a book."

"About what?" Cooper asks.

"Our family, knucklehead. "What else?"

"Seriously?" Cooper chuckles.

"It'll keep my mind sharp."

"You're a jack of all trades." Cooper teases her. "Chief of Staff, sexologist, mother, grandmother, handy-woman and now we can add book writer to the list."

"It's called an author, Coop."

Cooper steals another kiss before teasing, "maybe you should host one of those afternoon talk shows. We'll call it, '_Sex talk with Dr. King'_." Cooper chortles. "It'll be a hit."

Charlotte shushes him with her finger. "Playground, Coop, kids."

Cooper nods his understanding before focusing his attention back on Baby Grace.

* * *

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	102. Chapter 102

_**CHAPTER 102**_

* * *

It's ten pm; Chase is stretched out across his bed watching tv when his phone suddenly rings. He leans over to grab it off the bedside table. He checks to see if it is the hospital calling about a patient. It says private caller.

"Hello?" He answers.

"Chase?" Tess's voice echoes out of the speaker. "This is Tess Powers; my father said you needed to speak with me."

Chase bounces up to a sitting position. "Tess? Yes, I need to speak with you. I called your dad about a week ago. I was going to call him again tomorrow and, if I didn't hear from you soon I was going to hire a private investigator to find you. I know you're living in Georgia but Georgia's a big state."

"What's the sudden urgency to speak to me?"

"I want to talk about my son."

"Brayden?"

"Yes." He smiles into the phone.

"Why the interest after all these years?" She takes a deep breath and states. "He's four now. He thinks Damien is his daddy. You should have called five years ago."

"I just read the letter last week; the day I called your dad. I called him right after I read it."

"What letter?" She wants to make sure since the only letter she knows of is the one she left on his desk in his office five years ago.

"The one that starts out-Congratulations you're going to be a daddy. There were two sonogram pictures with it."

"I left that letter on your desk five years ago with my engagement ring." She asserts.

"It was misplaced, I didn't read it until last week, I swear."

Tess lets out a long sigh on the other end of the phone. "You mean you never knew that Brayden was your son?"

"How would I know if I didn't read the letter? You never told me you were pregnant."

"I'm sorry." Tess sits down now. She can't believe this is happening. "I assumed you read the letter and didn't want us in your life. I thought you wanted to be with Michelle."

Chase is excited. "I want to meet him as soon as possible."

"Does Michelle know?"

Chase pauses before swallowing. "Yes, I don't want to discuss that over the phone. We can discuss Michelle's involvement when I see you in person."

It suddenly dawns on Tess that the letter wasn't misplaced. Michelle took it. She has a flashback of returning to the office later that day to retrieve the letter and turning back when she saw him and Michelle screwing on his desk again. She was too upset at the time to consider that Michelle might have got to the letter first and hid it from him. She feels like such a fool now.

"Are you still there?" Chase notices the silence on the other end.

Tess pauses and runs her hands over her face before snapping back to time and place. "Brayden's going to be so confused. He thinks Damien is his daddy."

"Why did you tell him that Damien was his father?"

"Damien told Brayden he could call him daddy. I went along with it because I didn't think you wanted Brayden. I thought you and Michelle had your own children."

Chase shifts the phone to his other hand. "I have one child with Michelle, a little girl named Grace-Anne. She's almost ten months old. I want her to know her big brother."

"Congratualtions." Tess scowls on her end of the phone.

"Thank you." He gets back to the topic at hand. "When can I meet Brayden?"

"I'll have to discuss this with Damien...-"

He cuts her off. "_I'm_ Brayden's father... not Damien." Chase's insists. "This isn't up to him. He lied to me. Damien told me that he was Brayden's father."

"What are you talking about? When did Damien tell you that?"

"After your mother died. I called you to apologize for missing your momma's funeral." Chase continues, "Your father wouldn't give me your number so I called Damien's work phone. It crossed my mind that Brayden could be my son because of his age and my parents mentioned he looked like me when I was a baby, but Damien dashed those thoughts. He told me that Brayden was in fact his own son."

Tess is surprised. Damien never mentioned his conversation with Chase to her. "Why would you take Damien's word for it?"

"Mostly because I didn't think you were capable of lying about it to me. You knew how much I wanted children, that's why we broke up…-"

She cuts in. "I didn't lie to you. I left you the letter and _that's_ not why we broke up..."

"Not directly." He informs. "But it started the ball rolling. We were arguing because I wanted to set a wedding date and start a family. You were stalling and it caused a huge conflict between us so I turned to Michelle but I never thought you would keep my son away from me; that's why I believed Damien. I guess it was easier to believe Damien than to believe you would lie to me about something this important."

"I didn't lie to you." Tess repeats. "As far as I knew you read the letter. I thought you didn't want us." Tears come to her eyes now. "I wish we would have talked about this earlier." She wipes her eyes.

"There's nothing we can do about it now." Chase says, calmly. "We can't turn back the clock, but I want to get to know Brayden as soon as possible. I don't want to miss out on any more of his life than I already have."

"Okay." She nods in agreement. "He's a great kid. You're gonna love him."

"I know. I can't wait." Chase can't contain his excitement. "There's so much I want to teach him. I want him to meet my family."

Tess responds. "I'll look into flights to LA but I need to talk to Damien first."

"You don't need his permission." Chase says, annoyed.

"I'm not asking for his permission. I want to hear his side of things. I want to know why he lied and told you he was Brayden's father. He never told me about that conversation."

"Don't get into a confrontation with him. I have first hand experience. He's an unbelievably strong guy. He busted my lip and gave me a black eye when I visited you at the hospital the day your momma died."

Tess chuffs. "I can handle Damien. I'll call you after I arrange the flight and we can meet up somewhere."

"I can't wait." Chase beams. "And, Tess, for what it's worth, I really have missed you. I think about you all the time, I always have."

Tess swallows hard. "Me too. I see you every time I look in Brayden's eyes."

Chase smiles at that. "See you soon."

"See you soon." She hangs up the phone before lying down on her bed. Damien is away on a business trip and this is not something she wants to discuss with him over the phone. Her phone buzzes now, it's Damien's number. She turns her phone off, she's got nothing good to say to him tonight.

* * *

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	103. Chapter 103

_**CHAPTER 103**_

* * *

Charlotte sits in the quaint little restaurant at a table with Andie and Ruby. "Thanks for taking us out, momma. I'm not used to going out to eat where I could relax and look at the adult menu."

"When are you hiring a new nanny?" Charlotte asks her daughter.

"We're working on it." Andie skims through the menu. "I can't decide, the build your own salad is tempting but so is the Monte Cristo sandwich."

Charlotte licks her bottom lip. "The sliders here are the best."

"I was looking at those too." Ruby comments. "But I'm going to get the build your own salad with fruit and feta cheese."

"Why don't we order all three of them." Andie suggests. "This way we can swap with each other and have a taste of all three." Andie suggests.

"Sounds good to me." Charlotte agrees. "I'll order the sliders, Ruby can order the salad and you order the Monte Cristo."

Ruby licks her lips. "It sounds so good. I'm starving."

After they place their order, Andie looks at Ruby. "Drew said you had some questions for me."

"Yes." Ruby answers, rather shyly. Ruby's not usually shy but this is a touchy topic for her. "How did you go about it with high school?"

Andie leans in to hear her; Ruby's talking quietly.

Andie asks, "how did I go about what in high school?"

Ruby clears her throat. "How did you hide it….the pregnancy?"

Charlotte's surprised, as far as she knew Ruby was excited about being pregnant. "You want to hide your pregnancy?" Charlotte asks Ruby.

Ruby takes a sip of water. "Just from the kids at school; to avoid the comments and gossiping."

Andie butters a piece of bread. "It worked out okay for me in high school because I wasn't due until September so I spent my last trimester on summer break but before that I just wore loose shirts. If anyone noticed, they didn't say anything."

Ruby explains. "My pants are getting tight already, and I've still got six months to go. I'm thinking of dropping out because of it but Drew wanted me to talk to you first."

"Don't drop out." Andie advises. "The school district offers satellite classes for pregnant students. It's in a different building, off campus, but everyone in your class will be pregnant if you go to the satellite school. They offer vocational classes there and they have daycare for the baby while you're in school."

"Did you do that?" Ruby asks Andie.

Andie shakes her head. "I couldn't because you need your parents permission and signature to switch to that school." Andie looks at Charlotte. "And I was hiding it from my parents but since you're not I think you should try it."

Charlotte looks at Ruby. "Would you like to switch to that school?"

"Yes please." Ruby nods. "I think I would feel more comfortable there."

"Then that's what we'll do." Charlotte gives her a soft smile.

The waitress comes to deliver their food.

* * *

Chase walks into Benn Golder's office at the production company. "What can I do for you?" Benn looks up as he stuffs a folder in his briefcase.

"Your secretary said it was okay to come right in." Chase approaches Benn's desk.

"No problem. I was just packing up for the day. What's that?" His eyes gesture to an envelope Chase is holding in his hand.

"Did you know about this?" Chase hands Benn the envelope with the letter and ultraound pictures.

Benn opens it, taking a brief look at the contents. "Yeah, I knew."

"Why did you know?" Chase sits in a chair near Benn's desk.

Benn sits now too; this may take a while. "Michelle was very upset, she needed to talk to someone she trusted and...I was that person."

"I was her husband." Chase replies.

Benn nods. "Well, for obvious reasons she couldn't confide in you about the letter."

Chase is direct. "Why did she hide the letter from me?"

"It's simple, she loved you. She knew if you read the letter you'd be gone in a second to go retrieve your child and ex-fiance."

"If she loved me she wouldn't have kept me from knowing my son. It was a selfish thing to do, not a _loving_ thing to do."

"Love's complicated, man." Benn tells him. "People do crazy things when they're in love and believe me Michelle loved you. I can promise you that. I offered to take her back on more than one occasion but all she wanted was you."

Chase shifts in his chair a bit. "Was she ever planning on telling me I had a son with Tess?"

"She wanted to; she was stressing over it. She thought that all the bad luck she was having carrying a baby to full term was punishment from the universe for it. She was terrified of losing you but yes she was planning to give you the letter after Grace-Anne was born."

Chase furrows his brow. "Why then?"

"She would stand on equal ground with Tess after Grace-Anne was born. There would be a better chance of you sticking around then."

Chase rises to his feet and extends his hand. "Thank you. This was helpful."

"No problem." Benn shakes Chase's hand. "I miss her. She should still be alive."

"I miss her too." Chase agrees.

"So, you don't hate her for keeping the letter from you?"

Chase shakes his head. "I hate what she did but I could never hate her."

Benn walks Chase to the door. "That's big of you, man. I have a boy about the same age and I don't know if I coud be so forgiving if this happened to me."

Chase emphasizes. "I don't _like_ that she did it and, if she was alive we'd have a huge fight over it but she's _not_ alive. She can't defend her actions so I forgive her for Grace-Anne's sake. I don't want to feel bitter against my daughter's dead momma. I want to be able to tell Grace that her momma was an amazing woman which she was, except for this."

Benn pats Chase on the shoulder. "Michelle did it because she loved you. She didn't want to lose you; that's all you need to know."

Chase nods. "Thank you."

* * *

It's seven pm on a stormy evening in Georgia. Tess sits on the couch watching *Wheel of Fortune.* She just tucked Brayden in bed for the night and now she waits for Damien to come home from his business trip. She hasn't seen him all week and she didn't want to confront him with this by phone.

"Hey baby," Damien walks in the door, closing his umbrella. "It's good to finally be home, it's raining cats and dogs out there. What's for dinner?"

She walks up to him, just stopping short of getting close enough to greet him with her typical hello kiss. "Nothing's for dinner. I took Brayden to Chick-Fil-A and I wasn't much in the mood for eatin' tonight."

He can tell her demeanor is off tonight. "Is something wrong?" He pulls off his rain coat and hangs it on the hook.

"I talked to Chase Freedman the other night." She places her hands on her hips.

"What did that ass want?" Damien walks into the living room and pours himself a glass of vodka from the liquor cabinet.

"He wants to meet Brayden." Tess follows him.

"Why?" Damien sips the vodka.

"He just read the letter I left him five years ago, telling him I was pregnant with Brayden."

"How is that possible?" Damien sits on the couch with his drink.

"Michelle must have found the letter on his desk before he did and hid it on him."

"Why the hell would she do a thing like that?" Damien sips his drink.

"Isn't it obvious?" Tess shrugs. "So I would leave town and she could have Chase all to herself."

"That's a nasty thing to do." Damien swallows. "Is Chase gonna divorce her for it?"

"I don't know." Tess shrugs. "We didn't discuss his marriage. We discussed you."

"Me?" Damien takes another sip of his Vodka. "Why me? I had nothing to do with it."

"Chase said that you told him Brayden was your son."

"I was protecting you and Brayden from that ass." Damien responds.

"I don't need protecting from Chase. I wanted him to know he was Brayden's father. All this time, I thought he didn't want to be Brayden's father because of his awful wife. You lied to me by not telling me Chase didn't know."

"Don't blame this on me!" Damien raises his voice now. "I had nothing to do with it! I didn't even know you back then!"

"You knew that Chase didn't know he was Brayden's father and you never told me. That's the same as lying to me!"

"Because I didn't want you to go running back to LA into that asshole's arms."

"That wasn't up to you, Damien! You lied to me!" Tess yells.

Damien throws his glass of Vodka against the wall, shattering it. "This is bullshit! You've been living in my house for the past three years. I've been supporting you and your son. Brayden calls me daddy!"

"Because _you_ told him to call you that."

"He needed a father! You wanted him to have a father!"

"I wanted him to have Chase as his father."

"Damn you!" Damien yells. "Don't you appreciate anything I've done for you the past three years?"

"I do, Damien. That's just it." Tess explains. "I appreciate you stepping up as Brayden's father. I really do, but if you would have been honest with me and told me that Chase didn't know Brayden was his son I would have been grateful and appreciated it but instead you lied and let Chase think you were Brayden's dad. I can't forgive that kind of lie. I can't forgive a lie that hurts my son!"

He's starting to look apologetic now, and guilty. But when he tries to speak again, she cuts him off. "I don't think I could ever forgive it, Damien, you cost Brayden too many years with his father!"

"So, you were just using _me_ then? I'm not a good enough father for your son?"

She turns on her heel. "You would have been if you didn't lie to me!" Tess stomps across the hall to the bedroom.

"Where are you going? We're not done yet!" He spots her suitcase packed in the bedroom near the bed.

"I'm taking Brayden to LA to meet his dad."

"The hell you are! I'm his dad!"

"You can't stop me." She turns to look at him. "I can take…-"

"No," he cuts her off. "You're not taking Brayden anywhere!"

"I'm sorry but…-" she picks up her suitcase and stomps toward the bedroom door. She plans on waking Brayden and taking him to her grandma's house for the night. They have a flight booked for LA tomorrow.

"You're not going anywhere!" He wraps his hand around her elbow. Her suitcase drops to the floor.

"Let go of me!" She jerks her arm away, reaching for the door. He pushes the bedroom door shut, holding his hand over it so she can't get out.

"Let go of the goddamned door, Damien!"

"Not until you agree not to leave."

"I've already booked the tickets! I'm going!"

He places one hand on each of her hips and lifts her up. He carries her over to the bed and drops her down on it. She lands on her back.

"What are you doing, Damien?" Tess lifts herself into a sitting position on the bed. "I want to leave."

He unzips his pants and pushes them down just enough. "Chase Freedman is not getting what's mine!" He places a hand on each of her shoulders and presses her down onto her back.

She tries to sit up but he holds her down.

"I don't want to do this, Damien. Not now when we're fighting."

Damien looks into her eyes. "Tell me you won't go to LA to meet Chase." He waits a minute for her to answer but she doesn't say anything. "Okay then." He tugs at her sweat pants.

"Don't do this, Damien." She tugs her sweatpants up as he tries to tug them down. "You're not scoring any points this way!" She pleads as she pushes him away with her other hand.

He lets go of her pants and threatens. "You're my woman. You're not leaving."

Tess's voice gets quieter. "Damien, I never said I was leaving you. All I said was that I was taking Brayden to meet Chase and that I was upset with you for lying."

Damien takes a few steps back. "You said you could never forgive me." He zips his pants back up.

"But that has nothing to do with Chase. I never said I was getting back together with him." She sits up on the bed. "I just want Brayden to meet his father."

"I'm sorry, baby. I love you." Damien's voice is softer now. He sits down next to her on the bed.

"You were about to rape me. How can you say that you love me, Damien?" Tears leak from Tess's hazel-green eyes.

"What?" Damien responds. "I wasn't going to rape you."

"You pushed me down onto the bed and were trying to tug my pants down while we were arguing." Tears flow down Tess's face, thinking back to the time in the barn so many years ago. She starts to sob.

"I'm sorry. I didn't do anything. I didn't hurt you." Damien gently rubs her back.

"But you intended to. I was scared." Tess wipes her tears away with the palm of her hand.

"I'm sorry. I was just mad because you want to go see Chase and you want to take Brayden with you." Damien sits on the bed next to Tess. "I love you and I love our little Bray-Bud." He wipes a tear from her face with his thumb. I'm sorry if I scared you. I'll make it up to you in the morning. I promise."

Tess swallows. There's no point in trying to leave tonight. He'll only try to stop her again. "I'm tired. I wanna go to sleep." She gets up off the bed and walks toward the bathroom.

"Are we okay?" He watches her walk into the bathroom.

She nods at him before she closes the bathroom door. Little does he know, but she'll be on a flight to LA to meet with Chase tomorrow afternoon whether he likes it or not.

* * *

_**Review and have a great day.**_


	104. Chapter 104

**_Chapter 104_**

* * *

The next morning, Tess strolls into the kitchen. There's a bouquet of long stem red roses sitting on the kitchen table with a note. Tess picks up the note. "Sorry about last night. Let's go to the Outer Banks next weekend. We'll take Brayden. He'll love to watch the wild horses on the beach. Love-D.

Tess grabs a pen and scribbles on a piece of paper. "Sorry, I'm taking Brayden to LA to meet his father. I'll talk to you when I get back."

Regardless of what happens with Chase in LA, Tess is planning to break up with Damien after the way he behaved last night. She can't have a man like that influencing her son, she tells herself before putting the pen down.

Brayden runs out of the bedroom now. "Mornin', momma. Where's daddy?" Brayden rubs his eyes.

"He went to work."

"Did daddy give you those flowers?" Brayen leans in to sniff a rose. "They smell good."

"Yes, he did give me the flowers." Tess responds.

"Why?" Brayden asks.

"Because he did something that wasn't very nice last night and sending flowers is daddy's way of apologizing to me."

"Oh, what did he do?" Brayden asks.

"Never mind what he did, Bray-Bud. Come sit with me; I need to talk to you." Tess puts the flowers down and strolls over to the sofa.

"What, momma?" Brayden follows his momma. She sits down and scoops him up onto her lap.

"You and I are going on a little trip." She tells him.

"Where?" Brayden asks.

"We're taking an airplane to Los Angeles today to visit grandpa."

"What about daddy?"

"Daddy is going to stay here." Tess swallows. "But that's the other thing I need to tell you. You have another daddy who lives in California."

"I have two daddies?" Brayden looks up at his momma, surprised.

Tess nods. "Yes."

"Why do I have two daddies?" Brayden asks.

Tess swallows while thinking how to explain this to a four year old. "Because you're lucky." Tess tweaks his nose.

Brayden looks at her with wide, bewildered eyes. "Oh," he thinks a minute before asking. "Do other kids have two daddies?"

"Some kids do." Tess explains. "Some children have a daddy and a step- daddy. Damien is your step- daddy. Your bio daddy lives in California, near grandpa."

"What's my bio daddy?"

"Your bio daddy is the daddy who made you with me. But he lives far away so Damien took his place as your daddy."

"Oh." Brayden tries to process this information.

Tess adds "And they both love you bunches, so you see, you're a lucky little boy." Tess tousles her son's hair, hoping she's making sense to him.

"That's nice but I only want one daddy. I like my daddy. He's a good daddy."

Tess takes a breath. "Your other daddy is a great guy. You're gonna love him."

"What's his name?" Brayden asks.

"His name is Chase and we're going to see him when we go to Los Angeles. He lives there. Do you understand?"

"But I don't want a new daddy. I don't wanna go on an airplane to meet him." Brayden pouts.

Tess cups Brayden's chin in her hand and lifts it so she can look into his eyes. "I know it's hard to understand, Bray-Bud, but I want you to meet Chase. He can't wait to meet you."

"I like _my_ daddy. I don't wanna meet Chase." Brayden pleads.

Tess squeezes Brayden's hand now. "Let's just meet him Bray-Bud. I promise you that you'll like him. He's a very nice man and he loves children." Tess tweaks Brayen's nose again in an effort to cheer him up but it doesn't work.

Brayden screws up his face. "I don't wanna go." Brayden folds his arms against his chest. "You can go. I wanna stay home with daddy."

"Daddy has to work, Bray-Bud." She tickles Brayden now to try and make him smile. "I promise you we're going to have fun in California and you're going to really like Chase."

Brayden giggles a little now from his momma tickling his belly. "Do you like Chase?"

Tess chuckles at that. "Of course I like Chase. I wouldn't have you if it wasn't for him. We had to like each other in order to make you."

"How come I don't know him?" Brayden asks.

"Because momma left Los Angeles while you were still in my tummy so your daddy never got to meet you, but he's real excited to meet you now."

Brayden concedes, "okay, I'll meet him if you want me to, momma, but I still want Damien to be my daddy. I like watching the Brave's games with him and he's my t-ball coach."

"Okay, Bray-Bud." Tess pats his knee. "We need to get ready for our trip. Go brush your teeth." Tess watches him run into the bathroom. This is going to be a lot harder than she thought. Tess picks up the phone to call Chase.

"Hello?" Chase answers the phone.

"It's Tess; I just wanted to let you know Brayden and I are flying into LA later today. We should get there around 9 pm."

"Good. I'll pick you up at the airport. I can't wait to see you both." Chase smiles into the phone.

"I don't think that's a good idea. It'll be past Brayden's bedtime. He might be cranky. My dad will pick us up." Tess is worried about how Brayden will react to meeting Chase for the first time. She wants it to be a good experience. "How about we meet tomorrow afternoon? This way Brayden can meet you after he has a good night's sleep."

"Tomorrow afternoon will be fine." Chase agrees.

Tomorrow is a Sunday, Chase has been going every Sunday to visit Michelle's grave at the cemetery for the past month. Chase is aware Tess doesn't know yet that Michelle passed away. Maybe if he shows Tess Michelle's grave she'll be able to forgive her for holding onto the letter. "Can you meet me at 2pm at the cemetery?"

"Which one?" Tess thinks it's odd he wants to meet at a cemetery.

"Falcon Pointe. It's the one that has a large park and playground bordering it on the street."

"That's fine." Tess wonders why they don't just meet at the park but she chooses not to challenge it.

"I look forward to seeing you tomorrow at two."

"Same here." Tess says before hanging up.

* * *

It's after midnight, Charlotte can't sleep after Chase just gave her the news about meeting Tess and Brayden at the cemetery tomorrow. Charlotte thought it was a strange place to meet but Chase explained that the kids could play at the park next door while he talked to Tess. He asked Charlotte if she would bring Harper and the boys along to help melt the ice with Brayden. Charlotte pulls her robe on and makes her way into the kitchen. She's surprised to find Ruby sitting at the table eating a piece of chocolate cake.

"I didn't know you were officially moved in yet?" Charlotte asks.

"It was late when the movie Drew and I were watching ended. He said I could stay in Andies's old room instead of driving home so late on my own."

"Does your father know that you're staying here tonight?"

"My father's in New York on business. He has no idea where I am tonight."

Charlotte can't help but feel sympathy for this girl who tricked her son into becoming a father. She doesn't like it but at the same time she understands it. This girl is screaming out for someone to love her.

"What are we eating?" Charlotte looks at the rich desert.

"Chocolate Blackout Cake. I had a craving so Drew and I picked it up at the market earlier. Care to join me in a bite?"

Charlotte reaches for a spoon and digs into the cake. "This is just what I needed."

"What are you doing up so late?" Ruby asks.

"Excitin' day tomorrow; meeting another grandchild of mine."

Ruby takes another bite of cake. "I heard Chase had a son, how exciting for you."

"Thank you." Charlotte nods her head. "How are you doing?"

Ruby licks her spoon and she looks like a little girl to Charlotte when she does, a lonely little girl. "I've decided to attend that school Andie told me about the other day. I faxed my dad the papers to sign."

'That's great." Charlotte takes another spoonful of cake.

"Thank you for letting me stay with your family while I'm pregnant." Ruby takes a sip of milk. "I promise not to be a bother."

"You're not a bother. I kinda like having you around." Charlotte licks the icing off her spoon. "I'm outnumbered by all the testosterone in this house."

"Really?" Ruby seems truly surprised. "You don't hate me for getting pregnant and making your son a father before he turns seventeen."

Charlotte responds. "It wouldn't be the first time it happened around this house."

"Drew doesn't know how lucky he is to have you and Dr. Cooper for parents." Ruby looks directly at Charlotte.

"You have us too, Ruby. We're here for you too."

Ruby swallows and feels the tears come to her eyes. This is all she needed to hear. "Thank you, Dr. King."

Charlotte stands up to bring the dishes to the sink. "Call me momma, if you like."

"Yes, I like that." Ruby looks at Charlotte. "Thank you...momma." Ruby tries it out.

"Goodnight, Ruby." Charlotte gives her a soft kiss on the top of her head before heading back upstairs to the bedroom. She doesn't think she did much but she changed a lonely girl's world tonight.

* * *

_**Thanks for reading. Please take a moment to review and don't forget to have a great day! =)**_


	105. Chapter 105

_**Back to the Prologue-**_

* * *

Charlotte and Cooper sit on a bench in the cemetery while Harper and her two younger brothers run in circles, playing tag around them. Chase stands in front of them, nervously waiting with his hands in his pockets. "Here she comes." Cooper points to a blonde slender figure walking in the cemetery entrance. An older gentleman and small child follow behind her.

Tess approaches Chase and his parents. "Hello." She says to them all. "This is a bit awkward. Isn't it?"

Chase's eyes light up at the sight of her. "It's great to see you." He takes his hand out of his pocket to shake with Tess.

The older gentleman and a small boy of about four years approach them now. Tess turns around. "Dad, can you believe we're finally meeting up with Chase Freedman and his parents again? It's been so long."

The older gentleman nods. Chase extends his hand out to greet him but the older man keeps his hands behind his back.

Cooper stands up from the bench followed by Charlotte. "Mr. Powers. It's nice to see you again." Cooper extends his hand out. Tess's father returns the gesture. "It's nice to see you again, Dr. Freedman."

Charlotte also shakes hands with Tess's father. "I'm sorry about your wife. I'm sorry we missed the funeral."

"Thank you." Tess's father shakes Charlotte's hand. "It's been hard on our family."

"Yes" Cooper agrees. "A death in the family takes a toll on everyone. We know all about that."

Chase looks down at the small boy with the brown hair and blue eyes, clutching a Thomas the Train in his hand. "Hello."

The mini-Chase looks up at him. "Hi."

"I see you like Thomas the Train?" Chase asks the boy.

"Yes." The little boy nods, wondering why this strange man is talking to him. Harper and her younger brothers stare at the boy.

Tess looks at her father. "Dad, Chase and I need to talk. Would you mind taking Brayden to the park next door to play? We shouldn't be long."

"Fine." Mr. Powers nods.

"Mind if Charlotte and I come along with you?" Cooper asks Tess's dad. "Our grandchildren would love to play with Brayden."

"That's up to Tess." Mr. Powers answers.

"It's fine, dad. Brayden should get to know his cousins."

Charlotte and Cooper follow Mr. Powers to the park with the four children in tow.

Chase and Tess both take a seat on the bench now. "Why did you ask me to meet you at a cemetery?" Tess asks. "My father and I thought it was an odd place to meet."

Chase switches his gaze from Tess to a marble headstone about thirty feet in the distance. "I come here a lot."

"Why?" Tess shrugs, a bit baffled.

"Come with me, I'll show you." Chase gets up and leads Tess to the grave. Tess gasps, looking at the marble headstone. "I'm sorry." She tells Chase. "I had no idea."

"How would you know?" Chase shrugs.

"I can't believe it." Tess stares at the image sketched on the headstone. "What in the world happened?"

"It's a long story. I'll tell you all about that later, right now I want to talk about Brayden."

"Why did you call me asking to meet Brayden now?" Tess asks. "After almost five years?"

"I explained to you on the phone I just found the letter last week." Chase pulls an envelope out of his pocket. "If I would have read the letter five years ago, I would have been there for you. I would have been there for the birth of my son." Chase's eyes start to water.

"I thought you read the letter and chose _not_ to be there for me and Brayden." Tess's eyes start to water now too.

"I don't understand, Tess." Chase explains. "You know I've always wanted children. What would make you think I wouldn't want to be in Brayden's life?"

"First off, you didn't call me after I left you the letter…-"

Chase interrupts. "That's because I never saw the letter until last week."

"Second of all, I did come back three months later to talk to you, your momma told me you were engaged to Michelle. We dated for years, Chase, before you asked me to marry you but you got engaged to Michelle in three months?"

"It took us years to get engaged because we started dating when we were sixteen. We waited until we were out of medical school to get engaged. I got engaged to Michelle because you left me. You disappeared and I was lonely. I've haven't been alone since I was sixteen. I needed someone to fill the space after you left."

Tess raises her voice now to make it clear. "I left because you cheated on me when I was pregnant!"

Chase defends. "I didn't know you were pregnant. We were fighting at the time and I had a weak moment. I was wrong."

Tess swallows hard before speaking. "After I caught you cheating on me, I questioned if you ever loved me. I couldn't trust you so I left you my engagement ring and the letter, telling you I was pregnant. I said to meet me that Friday night at Giorgio's if you wanted to be a father to our baby, you never showed up."

"I found the ring lying on my desk but there was no letter." Chase sighs.

"We both know who took the letter." Tess shakes her head.

"I know now." Chase nods. "I'm sorry, Tess, but I never stopped loving you. I've been punished enough for cheating on you. I've missed out on the first four years of my son's life."

Tess nods with tears in her eyes. "Believe it or not, I was relieved when you called last week. I want Brayden to know you."

"I want to know him too, more than anything else in this world."

"Shall we go to the park so you can meet your son?"

"I'd love too." Chase beams. They take the five minute walk to the park, holding hands. It feels like they were never apart.

"Momma!" Brayden runs up to Tess. Cooper and Charlotte follow along with Tess's dad.

"I have someone I want you to meet, Bray-Bud." Tess picks the four year old up in her arms.

"Who, momma?" The bright blue eyed little boy asks.

She introduces Chase. "This is your daddy."

The little boy stares up at Chase with big blue eyes. "He's my daddy?"

Chase looks in his little boy's eyes. "Yes. _I'm _your daddy. I promise you that I'm your daddy for always and forever. Give me five." Chase holds his hand up, the little boy smacks it.

Tess tells her son. "And this is your grandma Charlotte and grandpa Cooper."

"Hi." Brayden hand slaps Charlotte.

"You look just like your daddy did when he was your age." Charlotte gives the little boy a kiss on the cheek.

Cooper hand slaps the little boy. "It's nice to meet you, Brayden. I'm your other grandpa."

"I'm lucky, momma." Brayden looks up at Tess. "I have a grandma and two grandpa's"

"And cousins." Cooper tells him. "You see that blonde girl and those two little boys tagging along behind her?"

"Yes." Brayden nods.

"Those are your cousins."

"Can I go play with them, Momma?" Brayden asks Tess.

"Sure thing, Bray-Bud." Tess answers. "I'm gonna be sitting right here on the bench talking with your daddy."

Charlotte and Cooper sit with Tess's dad while they watch their grandchildren play.


	106. Chapter 106

_**CHAPTER 106**_

* * *

Tess glances at her watch; it's five minutes to eight on a Friday night. She's sitting at a table at Giorgio's waiting for Chase. He asked her to meet him there, probably to discuss a visitation arrangement for Brayden.

Broken Spell is performing up on stage and it feels eerily like she's never been gone, like she's home again. Chase saunters over to the table. She stands up to greet him.

He takes her hand in his hand kisses it. "You look fabulous." He tells her before they sit down.

"You too." She smiles, handing him the menu. "I already know what I want to order. I've missed the Chicken Marsala they make here. Is it still the same or did they change the recipe?"

"It's the same. They don't mess with a good thing." Chase smiles.

While Chase looks at the menu, Tess watches Nicky and his band perform on stage. "Nicky looks as good as always."

Chase looks up at Tess. "Broken Spell is doing well."

"It's nice that Nicky still plays here; I mean he's gone big time. Broken Spell concerts are always quick to sell out when they come to Atlanta."

Chase shrugs. "Giorgios is Broken Spell's roots. They started out playing here before they were big and his grandmother, well my grandmother, owns the place."

"I bet it brings in big business for her."

"Look around." Chase tells her. "The place is packed."

"I thought that's because it was a Friday night. Is it always this crowded now?"

"Pretty much." Chase nods. He watches Tess, admiring how beautiful she is. It's been a long time since he's taken her out to dinner.

Tess looks around the restaurant. "Good thing we had a reservation. They told this woman she would have to wait two hours to be seated if she didn't have reservation."

Chase smiles. "Well I know the owner, besides I didn't ask you here to talk about Broken Spell or Giorgio's." Chase closes his menu. The waitress notices and comes over to take their order. Chase tells her, "we'll both have the Chicken Marsala and a bottle of your best white wine."

After the waitress leaves Tess asks Chase. "I'm curious; why did you ask me here?"

"To answer your questions." Chase pulls out the letter and hands it to Tess. She hasn't seen it in five years. She reads it to refresh her memory of exactly what questions she asked him five years ago.

_Dear Chase-_

_CONGRATULATIONS- You're going to be a daddy. These are ultrasound photos of our baby. I'm leaving this letter since I can't talk to you yet. My head is spinning with questions. Do you still love me? Did you ever love me? How long have you been cheating on me? Were there others? Have you been playing me for a fool the entire time we dated or did you change? When did you change? I had no idea. The Chase I knew and loved would never cheat on me. The Chase I knew and loved was an honest man but maybe I never knew you. In any case, I am pregnant with your child so we will need to work something out. If you're willing to answer my questions and discuss raising our child together meet me at Giorgio's this Friday night at 8pm. If not, I plan to leave town and raise the baby on my own. I'm not strong enough to sit by and watch you with your nurse lover. I hope to see you at Giorgio's but if not then...- Tess_

After she's finished reading the letter she hands it back to him.

He folds the letter and puts it in his pocket. Next he latches his hand with hers and looks pointedly in her hazel-green eyes. "Yes, I still love you. I always have... never stopped. The time you caught me in my office with Michelle was the first time I cheated on you with her. There were no others. I didn't play you for a fool. I may have changed a little but doesn't everyone with time? I am still the Chase you fell in love with. I wish I could have met with you at Giorgio's five years ago to answer your questions.

Tess swallows and takes it all in. "So do I."

Chase takes a sip of his ice water.

Tess tells him. "I have another question for you."

Chase sips his drink. "Shoot."

Tess asks bluntly. "Did you love Michelle?"

Chase takes a second before answering. "Yes, I loved Michelle but it wasn't the same kind of love that I have for you."

Tess listens intently. She really needs to hear this.

Chase explains. "Michelle and I bonded after you left. She was recently dumped by someone she was in love with. We shared each others pain and wanted the same things out of life; marriage and children . We became close but Michelle knew you were my one true love and I knew she still was in love with Benn. We couldn't be with the ones we loved so we learned to love the one we were with."

Tess swallows and nods. "If Michelle was still alive would we be having this conversation?"

Chase answers, "if I found the letter when Michelle was alive I don't think I would be able to forgive her for keeping you and Brayden out of my life."

"But you forgive her now?"

"I do." He nods. "Michelle told me about the letter before she died. She wanted me to know about Brayden but she wanted to give me a baby of our own first."

"Why?" Tess sips her water.

"Michelle knows if I read that letter I would want to meet my son and tell you how sorry I was for cheating on you. Michelle didn't want to lose me."

"Would she have been right? Would you have left her for me if you found the letter when she was still alive?"

Chase nods. "No doubt about it."

"Then I guess Michelle was a smart woman." Tess watches the waitress set their food on the table.

"Enjoy." The waitress smiles.

"Thank you." They say in unison before picking up their forks. A few minutes of silence go by while they eat their food before Tess asks. "Are you sorry you cheated on me? I mean, if you could have a do-over?"

He puts his fork down. "Of course I'm sorry. I wish things didn't have to be this way. The only thing I'm not sorry about is that Grace-Anne came out of it. She's a precious gift that Michelle gave me."

Tess nods before taking another bite of her Chicken Marsala.

Chase takes a sip of wine and asks. "Do you still love me?"

"I was hurt beyond words when you cheated on me, and I tried my best to not think about you but it was really hard since I have Brayden. I was never able to stop loving you. You gave me the best gift in my life...Brayden."

"I wish I could have been there for you when you were pregnant and when he was a baby."

Tess gives a sluggish shrug. "There's nothing we can do about it now."

"We just have to find the good in it, I guess." Chase tells her.

"What good?" Tess asks.

"Well," Chase hesitates. "After all these years we can still finish each others sentences, you know what I mean?"

"Yes," Tess smiles. "It feels like we've never been apart when I talk to you. It so easy. I like that." She picks up her drink to sip.

"Yeah." Chase smiles before he starts to speak again, "I don't like Damien but I am glad you found someone who could make you happy while we were apart. I wouldn't have wanted you to be alone. How did you and Damien meet?"

Tess puts her glass down. "I met him while I was jogging at the park with Brayden and BJ."

"Who's BJ?" Chase puts his glass down and asks with great interest.

"Oh gosh. I forgot we haven't spoke in so long. BJ is a good friend of mine who I met in Georgia. We dated briefly before I met Damien."

"Was BJ okay with that?" Chase's brow wrinkles. Tess seems to have been busy in Georgia while he was in LA with Michelle.

"Well, I'm sure he wasn't thrilled about it but BJ just wasn't my type and he knew that; we were better off as friends" Tess continues to explain. "I met BJ while I was jogging with Brayden. Brayden was an infant and BJ is a lot like you when it comes to kids. He adored Brayden and was a great father figure." Tess shrugs. "Since I was a single woman I thought it would be good for Brayden to have a caring man in his life."

"So you dated BJ for Brayden's sake but you weren't interested in him?"

"Yeah. He's a good friend but I wasn't interested in a serious relationship with him. We just had casual sex."

Chase nearly chokes on his water after he hears that. After he stops coughing he asks, "so, you used him for casual sex?"

Tess lets out a giggle. "I didn't use him. He enjoyed it just as much if not more than me."

"I'm sure." Chase shakes his head with a smile. "I don't know. That doesn't sound like you. I didn't think you were the causal sex type."

"I'm not." Tess's voice gets quieter when she says. "But you were with Michelle. I guess after seeing you with Michelle in your office I didn't want to stay celibate. You certainly weren't."

"I'm sorry." Chase clears his throat and say again. "I shouldn't have done that. It was wrong, very wrong."

"It's in the past." Tess says softly, "I know you're sorry."

"So you and BJ were just friends, tell me about Damien now. Are you in love with _him?" _Chase asks.

Tess puts her fork down to speak. "It's over. I confronted Damien about his conversation with you. I was upset he told you he was Brayden's father." She picks up her wine glass, holding it in front of her mouth. "Let's just say it didn't go well."

Chase nods. "That guy has a hot temper. You're lucky he didn't bust your lip or give you a black eye like he did to me after your momma died."

Tess responds in a hushed voice. "That might have been better."

"Yeah, I get that." Chase nods. "Sometimes words can inflict more pain than physical harm. The physical wounds heal a lot faster than the emotional wounds." Chase digs into his chicken with his fork.

Tess picks up her wine again for another sip. There's no point in telling Chase how Damien pushed her onto the bed and attempted to have forceful sex with her because he was mad. No point in telling him that, indeed.

"So," Chase exhales deeply before asking. "Since we're both single, do you want to give this love thing another shot? Maybe we can start dating again?"

"I'd like that but...-"

"But what?" Chase asks, nervously.

"You have to promise on your life you'll never cheat on me again. You know the saying _once a cheater, always a cheater_. I don't want to believe that's true but I..."

He holds his hand up to cut her off. "I promise I will never cheat on you again. I swear on my life. I don't know what I was thinking five years ago but I swear I'll never hurt you again." He hesitates before saying, "but I also have one condition."

"What's that?" She raises her eyebrows with curiosity.

Chase shifts his weight to pull his wallet out of his back pocket. He opens it up and pulls a small photo out. He hands it to Tess. "Do you have room in your heart for the other lady in my life?"

Tess studies the picture and can't help but smile. It's a studio photo of Grace-Anne from when she was about six months old. She's sitting in a dress up box filled with beads and feathers. The baby girl's wearing a pink floppy hat and a lacey purple dress. "Aw, she's adorable. I've always wanted a little girl." She studies the photo a little more. "She's beautiful. She looks a lot like Michelle but I see some of you in her too."

"Thanks" Chase says before asking, "so, can you make some room in your heart for my daughter?"

Tess looks at Chase. "I could never hold what Michelle did against an innocent baby."

"Even if she's Michelle's baby and looks like Michelle?" Chase asks.

Tess looks at the picture again. "Yes, even if she's Michelle's baby. I can't wait for Bray-Bud to meet her. He's going to be so excited to find out he has a little sister. He's gonna love her."

"Good," Chase places the photo back in his wallet. "because Grace is gonna need as many people to love her as possible, she doesn't have a momma."

Tess swallows and thinks for a minute. "How about if we take Brayden and Grace-Anne to Disneyland this weekend? Brayden's dying to go. I know Grace is a little young for the rides but it would be a great place to introduce them."

"I'd like that. I'm sure Grace would love it too." Chase agrees. "It's a date."

"Family style." Tess smiles.

* * *

_**A/N- **Previously, I left a note saying there would be 107 chapters. Ya'll asked for more so I've added additional chapters to give further closure to the characters. So, don't worry, It's not over yet. =) Feel free to send me a message if you have a question. I love hearing from ya'll!_

_**Review and have a great day! **_


	107. Chapter 107

_**CHAPTER 107**_

* * *

Tess stands on the doorstep of what used to be her house, the house she shared with Chase before she left town five years ago. Brayden stands next to her, she primps her hair one last time before ringing the doorbell.

Chase stops himself from running to answer the door. He's expecting them; they're planning to drive to Disneyland to spend their first family day together. Chase slows down his pace, answering the door, casually. "Hello." He can't help but smile at the sight of them standing in front of him. "Come in."

Tess takes Brayden's hand, leading him into the house she once shared with Chase.

"Is that an Atlantic Braves shirt you're wearing?" Chase asks Brayden, to make conversation.

"Yep. The Braves are me and my daddy's favorite team." Brayden announces.

Chase's smile fades for a second before he grabs a box off the table, handing it to Brayden. "I got you a little something."

Brayden looks at the box. "Oh. Can I open it?"

"Sure, I'll help you." Chase watches Brayden rip the box open. "I don't know why they tie these things into the boxes so tight." Chase complains as he helps Brayden try to pull the plastic toy bubble gun out of the box.

"My daddy told me they do that so nobody can steal it." Brayden tells Chase.

"Yeah, I think he's right." Chase answers in a quiet voice as he looks over at Tess.

Tess can tell it bothers Chase to hear Brayden refer to Damien as his daddy.

"We'll talk about it later." She says to him quietly.

Chase nods, knowingly, at her before telling Brayden. "It takes me ten minutes to open a toy for Grace-Anne, with the way they have these things booby-trapped."

"Do you have a Swiss Army knife?" Brayden asks Chase. "My daddy uses his Swiss Army knife to cut the plastic ties open."

"Good idea." Chase pulls his pocket knife out and slits the ties.

"See, I told you it would work." Brayden smiles. "My daddy's smart."

Chase grunts to himself.

Tess ignores Chase's reaction. She smiles as she watches Chase pull the motorized bubble blower gun out of the package and hand it to Brayden.

"Let me fill if up with bubbles for you." Chase unscrews the cap of the bubble bottle.

"Me and my dad have Nerf guns at my house." Brayden tells Chase as he watches him pour the bubbles into the chamber.

"That's nice." Chase says, without looking up. He hands the bubble gun to Brayden.

Brayden presses the trigger and starts shooting big bubbles at Chase.

"Not in the house." Tess tells Brayden. Someone's going to slip on the bubble soap.

"Where can I play with it then, momma?"

"You can play with it in the backyard." Chase tells him. Brayden follows Chase to the backdoor.

"Do you have a bubble gun too?" Brayden asks. "At home me and my daddy play together. We hide behind the trees in the backyard and try to shoot each other. He's getting me a laser Nerf gun for Christmas. Those are really cool."

Chase sighs. Now he wishes he bought Brayden the laser Nerf gun he wants for Christmas to score points over Damien.

Tess watches. She knows how Chase is feeling but she can't say anything in front of her young son.

"Are you coming out to play with me?" Brayden asks Chase as he steps out the back door.

"I don't have a bubble gun but I'll come out and play with you in a few minutes; I need to talk to your momma first." Chase turns to Tess. "The backyard is fenced in. Michelle and I put a fence up when we found out she was pregnant."

Tess nods. "It's fine. Brayden's good, he won't leave the yard."

Chase stands at the back door watching Brayden run around the backyard shooting bubbles with his new toy. "I thought Brayden understood _I_ was his father?"

Tess answers. "He's four years old, Chase, give him time. Brayden's known Damien his whole life, he just met you."

They can hear Grace-Anne start to cry from the baby monitor. Chase excuses himself. "Grace is awake, I'm going to go and get her dressed for Disneyland." He heads to the nursery.

Tess looks around the living room while Chase is gone. She pads over to the wall to look at a 12x14 framed wedding picture of Chase and Michelle. Michelle looks stunning, Chase looks like a prince, Tess thinks. She imagines how he would look similiar as her groom at their wedding. Tess swallows and lets the tears come to her eyes. She bites her lip for not calling Chase now and making sure he got the letter but who knew Michelle was capable of hiding it. Who knew she was capable of keeping Chase and his son apart for so long. Tess turns around and looks in the kitchen. She's surprised that it looks basically the same as the day she left. Same cabinets, same kitchen table, there's a new coffee maker but that's about it. It still looks like her kitchen.

Chase strolls into the kitchen holding Grace-Anne. "Can you hold her a minute while I pour her a bottle of milk?" He asks Tess.

Tess's eyes grow wide as she stares at Michelle's baby girl in Chase's arms. "Uhm…sure." She takes the baby from Chase. "She looks just like Michelle." Tess comments.

"Yeah, she's lucky." Chase does a half chuckle while taking the milk out of the fridge. "I give her half milk and half formula since she's going to turn one soon. This way it won't be a shock when I switch her over to whole milk after her birthday."

"Aha." Tess nods. "I did the same thing with Brayden, well, for us it was half milk, half breast milk. I never used formula on Brayden."

"I didn't have a choice since Michelle's gone and I can't breast feed." Chase hands Tess the bottle. Grace-Ann grabs it from Tess's hand and starts suckling on it.

"She's hungry, huh?" Tess watches Grace Suck on the bottle, her big green eyes wide open.

"She loves her morning bottle." Chase smiles, watching his daughter guzzle down her milk.

Tess and Chase walk over to the window to peek at Brayden playing with his bubble gun. "He's sure having fun with that. Thanks for giving it to him." Tess thanks Chase.

Chase continues to watch Brayden out the window. "It's great how well he plays by himself. I guess that's part of being an only child, trying to occupy yourself. I always had Andie and my brothers to play with."

Tess responds. "Brayden has a lot of friends and Damien likes to play sports with him. He coaches Brayden's t-ball team."

Chase just nods. He walks quietly back into the living room.

Tess follows him. She sits down next to him on the coach. "I'm sorry Michelle died." Tess offers. "No child should have to start their life without their momma to love them."

Chase nods, looking at the floor before looking back up at Tess. "Are you going to be able to do this?"

"What do you mean?" Tess looks at him while still holding Grace on her lap.

"I mean give us another try?"

"I told you yesterday I was willing to try. Why are you asking me again?"

"Because of what Michelle did by keeping me and Brayden apart. I completely understand if you hate her for it."

Tess asks. "Do _you_ hate her for doing that to us?"

Chase pauses a moment before answering. "I can't hate Michelle. She's Grace-Anne's momma. Yes, what she did was atrocious, outrageous and mean. If she was still alive I'd probably divorce her but she's _not_ alive so I can't hate her. She's Grace's momma. I want to be able to tell Grace all the good things about Michelle. I want to be able to tell my daughter that her momma was a wonderful and amazing woman."

"I understand that." Tess looks at the baby drinking her bottle.

Chase continues. "But I know it's not as easy for _you_ to forgive Michelle. And if we're going to make it work I need to know that you won't hold what Michelle did against Grace-Anne."

"Chase!" Tess is insulted. "How can you say something like that? I would never take it out on a baby. I can't believe you would even think I could do that."

Chase defends. "I know you wouldn't do it on purpose but maybe subconsciously because Grace-Anne looks so much like Michelle; she would remind you of what Michelle did and then…-"

Tess shakes her head. "I can't help what I do subconsciously but I know I'm not capable of taking anything out on a baby."

"Okay. I'm sorry." Chase looks sheepishly down at the floor. "I just need to know you'll love her as if she's your own."

"I just met her ten minutes ago and I already adore her, and it's going to take time for Brayden to get used to you as his daddy."

Chase nods. "I know, it's just that I've missed you so bad all this time and now you're here... I want things to go back to the way they were before. I want us to be this happy family; all four of us."

"I want that too, Chase, but it's going to take a little time for the kids to adjust. We'll take it slow and please don't get hurt feelings if Brayden calls Damien his daddy. That's all he's known for the past four years."

"I get that." Chase sighs. "I wish none of this happened."

Tess looks at Grace-Ann. "If none of this happened I wouldn't be holding this precious baby girl in my arms."

Chase stares now at Tess holding his daughter. "I can't believe that I'm sitting here watching you hold my daughter. It feels like a dream."

Tess assures Chase. "It'll work out."

"Promise?' Chase asks.

"I promise. It'll work out because we both want it to."

Chase smiles. "Okay. I'll promise to be patient with Brayden and not get my feelings hurt that he thinks Damien hung the moon."

Tess smiles and watches Brayden run in the back door.

Brayden runs to Chase. "I need more bubbles!" He holds the toy bubble gun up. "It's all out of bubbles."

Tess redirects her son. "Hey Bray-Bud. Slow down a minute. I want you to meet someone."

"Why are you holding that baby, momma?" He watches Grace-Anne drink her bottle on Tess's lap.

"This is _your_ baby sister. Her name is Grace-Anne." Tess tells him with a gentle smile.

"I have a sister?" Brayden scrunches his nose.

"Yes, you do, Bray-Bud."

"Are you her momma too?" Brayden is confused.

"No, silly, but she has the same daddy as you, that makes her your sister." Tess explains.

"Oh." Brayden looks at Chase.

Chase explains to Brayden. "You're my son and Grace is my daughter so she's your sister."

"Are you happy?" Tess asks Brayden.

"Yeah," Brayden grabs Grace-Anne's hand. "She's cute. Can I play with her?"

Chase answers. "After she finishes her bottle, we're going to leave for Disneyland. I'm sure she would love it if you rode next to her in the car and talked to her."

"Otay, I can't wait to go to Disneyland!" Brayden's excited.

"Me too." Chase grins. He's happy to be taking both his children to Disneyland together and Tess too, of course. Chase looks at Tess. "This is all I ever wanted. It's the best feeling in the world."

Tess looks at him and smiles. "I know."

* * *

Ruby walks in the door with Drew. There's a tall woman with blonde hair sitting on the couch having tea with Drew's momma. Ruby's eyes dart wide open. "Mum? What are you doing here?"

The tall blonde woman rises up on her feet. "I'm here for you, of course."

Ruby's stunned. "Why didn't you call?"

"I have. You haven't returned my calls in months."

Ruby shakes her head before blurting out. "You coulda left a voicemail! I listen to your voicemails."

"Now, how was I supposed to know that sweetheart?" Her mum answers.

Drew looks at Ruby, baffled by what's going on. He never knew her mum was calling her. He thought her mum didn't care about her.

"What are you doing here?" Ruby asks her mum again. "Why did you come?"

"A friend of yours, Alexis, called me. She had a bunch of questions about your upbringing." Ruby's mum explains.

"Alexis is my counselor. What did she tell you?" Ruby folds her arms.

"She told me nothing. She was the one asking me all the questions. She wanted to know why I haven't contacted you. I told her you never return my calls. I figured something was up so I called your dad and he told me you were up the duff."

Ruby lets out a big sigh. "That's why you came to California? Because daddy told you I'm pregnant?"

"That's not the only reason. I need to talk to you about something important, and since you don't return my calls or emails, I had no choice except to hop on an airplane."

Charlotte takes Drew by the elbow. "Excuse us, we're going to go and have a snack in the kitchen."

Drew follows his momma into the kitchen. He's stunned to finally meet Ruby's mum.

"Have a seat." Ruby's mum tells her daughter.

Ruby sits on the couch. "You don't need to tell me that. I live here; this is my house now." Ruby tells her mother. "This is my family now. Where's your husband?"

Ruby's mum hesitates a moment before answering. "Rick and I are in the process of getting a divorce."

Ruby's mouth drops open. "What?"

"Yes, we're divorcing." Ruby's mum confirms.

"Is that why you're here?" Ruby asks.

"I wanted you to know about it. And, I'm also here because Alexis called me with a zillion questions about your upbringing and then with your father telling me you're up the duff, I figured you needed me."

"Now mum? Now? I always needed you. Where were you two years ago or six months ago when I needed you?" Ruby rants. "Wait, I can answer that. You flew off with Rick to Nova Scotia to see the total eclipse of the sun…-"

"Ruby, I was _not_ in Nova Scotia. I've never been there."

"You know what I mean, mum. You were always flying off somewhere with Rick and you left me home with the nannies. How do you think I felt?"

"Okay, Ruby, you need to understand that I had you when I was very young. I gave up everything to raise you. I taught you everything I knew. I took good care of you. I taught you to surf and skate but most of all I taught you how to be a good person. Then, I finally met someone who wanted to take care of me. What's wrong with that?"

"Because you gave up everything you loved for Rick and one of them was me!" Ruby yells.

"I never gave you up, Ruby. You left! You wanted to move to the States to get to know your father. I thought it would be a good idea for you to get to know him better and to experience life and high school in the United States. I missed you, Ruby."

"That's an excuse! If you really loved me, you wouldn't have let me move to the States to live with daddy."

Ruby's mum sighs. "That's not true, Rube. I did miss you. I thought if I didn't let you live with your dad then you would resent me one day for keeping you from him and for denying the opportunity to experience high school in the United States. It was a sacrifice for me to let you go. I did it for you."

Ruby starts to cry now. She sniffles and wipes her eyes. "It's the hormones. I can't help it."

"Come here." Ruby's mum grabs her into a hug. "You're so much like me when I was your age."

"I missed you mum." Ruby sobs on her mum's shoulder. "Please don't leave me. I really need you now."

"Shhh…. Shhh…Baby. I'm not going to leave you."

Ruby breaks the hug and wipes her eyes. "Are you going to move to California?"

"I can't, baby. I have my job back home and your younger sister…-"

"But you just said that you weren't going to leave me."

"I'm not leaving you. I'm taking you back to Australia with me." Ruby's mum explains.

"But what about Drew and his family?" Ruby wipes her eyes.

"You can visit them and they're welcome to come to Australia to see you anytime they wish."

"But I'm pregnant, mum."

"I know that."

Ruby thinks a minute before telling her mum. "If I moved back to Oz, my baby is going to be just like me, living in Australia with it's mum while it's dad lives in the United States. Oh my God, she's going to be just like me and maybe leave me one day and come here to live with Drew."

"Hold on Ruby. Do you know the baby is a girl?"

"No, but I can't leave Drew and his family." Ruby starts to cry again. "I want to raise the baby with Drew. I don't want it to have the same childhood I had."

"It wasn't so bad Ruby; you and I had a lot of wonderful years together." Ruby's mum brushes some hair out of Ruby's eyes. "And you got to live with your dad in the States a few years too."

"But I'm pregnant." Ruby starts to cry again. "I don't know what to do."

Ruby's mum holds up her chin, "It's going to be okay, Ruby-Jane."

"What should I do, mum? I can't leave Drew if I'm gonna have his baby."

Ruby's mum sighs deeply."I should've made this trip six months ago, shouldn't I have?"

Ruby nods and hugs her mum.

* * *

_**Have a wonderful day, ya'll and don't forget to review =)**_


	108. Chapter 108

_**Chapter 108**_

* * *

It's 7:30 am, Chase awakes to the sound of the doorbell ringing. He pulls on some sweat pants, rubbing his chin, as he pads to the door. "Andie?" He says with a tad bit of surprise to his voice. "What are you doing here so early on a Sunday morning?"

Andie walks in the door, handing her brother a cup of coffee from a local fast food joint she drove through for it. "I have five kids, remember. I'm up at the crack of dawn everyday. I thought Grace-Anne would get you up early too?"

Chase takes the coffee with one hand while running his other hand through his hair. "Thanks for the coffee. Grace is usually up by now but we got in late last night. Brayden was having a blast at Disneyland so we stayed til closing time then he was playing with Grace in the car on the way home. I didn't have the heart to tell him to leave her alone and let her sleep."

Andie looks around. "Whose car is that parked in your driveway?"

"It's Tess's rent-a-car."

"Tess spent the night?" Andie's lips widen into a big smile.

"In the guestroom with Brayden." Chase clarifies. "I told you we got home late."

"I was hopin' maybe…-"

Chase smirks. "Tess and I have kids now, we can't just go run off into a bedroom."

Andie shrugs. "I've got five kids; Nicky and I are still doin' it."

Chase sits down with his coffee. "Ugh! you're my sister, I don't want to know about your sex life."

Tess strolls out of the guestroom wearing one of Chase's t-shirts and a pair of his shorts fastened on with a belt. "Andie?"

"Tess!" Andie rushes over to give a hug. "I can't believe you're back! Tell me you're here to stay this time."

"For a while." Tess hugs Andie back.

Andie breaks the hug. "How long is a while?"

Tess explains. "I'm staying in LA for a few weeks so Brayden can get to know Chase and see how things go then we'll see what happens."

"See what?" Andie asks and Chase listens too.

"If things work out for me and Chase we'll have to decide whether to make a home here in LA or back home to Georgia."

Andie responds. "But our family is all in LA and Chase's job is here."

Chase flashes Andie a smile. "They have kids in Georgia, they need pediatricians there too."

"Lots of kids." Tess adds. "And Brayden is friends with a lot of them. Georgia is Brayden's home."

"But he's four." Andie protests. "He can easily make new friends in LA."

"I like it in Georgia." Tess tells Andie. " I grew up there, it's a better place to raise kids."

"But, my parents want to know Brayden too." Andie adds.

"They're retired, they can come visit for months if they want." Tess tells Andie.

Chase holds his hand up to interrupt. "I'm going to leave you ladies to discuss this while I go into the kitchen and make some breakfast."

"Chicken." Tess teases Chase as he pads to the kitchen.

"It sounds like your mind is already made up." Andie tells Tess, sounding disappointed.

"It's not." Tess tells her gently. "Living in Georgia is an option for us just like living in LA is one. I just think Georgia has more to offer children while they're growing up."

"Chase and I grew up in LA and we're fine." Andie rebuttals.

"It's a different way of life. Why are you so upset if we live in Georgia?"

"I missed you, Tess. We used to be close. You helped me through Harper's birth. I finally got you back and you want to leave again."

"Hold on. We're not leaving yet. Chase and I need to see if things will work out for us and if we do go back to Georgia you can visit. Hell, I'd love it if you bought the house next door to us. I promise we'll always stay in touch no matter what."

Andie sports a gentle smile. "Okay."

Brayden runs out of the guest room wearing a new shirt Chase bought him from Disneyland.

"Come here, Bray-Bud. I want you to meet your Aunt Andie."

"Hi." Brayden gives a little smile and wave.

"Hi, buddy. You look just like your daddy."

"Which daddy?" Brayden asks.

Andie stops and smiles. "Your daddy Chase, of course. You're just as handsome or maybe even more handsome that him."

"What do you say to your Aunt Andie?" Tess asks Brayden.

"Thank you." Brayden says, politely.

"I heard you played with your cousins the other day?" Andie asks.

"Yesh." Brayden nods.

"Those are my children."

"Oh." Brayden responds.

"Would you like to play with them again?"

"Yesh." Brayden answers.

"Good, because they can't wait to play with you again too."

"Otay. I'll play with them." Brayden tells Andie.

Andie looks at Tess. "How about today at my house around one? We'll have a barbecue. I'll invite my parents, Drew and Ruby. It'll be a family get together. Too bad Noah and Marley are so far away…. Too bad you missed their wedding. My water broke at…-"

Tess holds her hand up to stop Andie from babbling. "One pm at your house is perfect." Tess smiles. "I can't wait to catch up with everyone."

* * *

Drew knocks on Ruby's bedroom door.

Ruby answers in a groggy voice. "What are you doing here so early on Sunday?"

"Sorry, my parents woke me up. I thought you would be up too."

Ruby rubs her tired eyes. "Nope. What's up?"

"My sister just called, she's having a barbecue this afternoon at one. She wants you to come."

Ruby answers. "My mum is meeting with Alexis this morning and then I was going to take her sight-seeing a bit."

"Well maybe you can swing by the barbeque with your mom and grab something to eat after."

"I'll try." Ruby hesitates. "But I don't know."

"Try hard, Ruby, you're part of my family now so you should be there."

Ruby nods. "Okay." She says before shutting the door to get dressed. She takes a deep breath and thinks to herself, all she ever wanted was to be a part of Drew's family and now that her mum's back she doesn't know what she wants anymore.

* * *

Chase strolls out of the kitchen. "I have to go up to the hospital for a little while, one of my patients is in the ER."

"Will you be home in time for the barbecue?" Andie asks.

"I shouldn't be long." Chase grabs his keys before giving Grace-Anne a soft kiss on her head. He turns to Tess. "I'll see you at the barbecue." He gives her a gentle kiss on the cheek before high fiving Brayden. "See ya later, little man."

"Bye...-" Brayden says and then stops. After Chase walks out the door he asks Tess. "Am I supposed to call him daddy?"

"You can call him whatever you feel comfortable calling him, Bray-Bud." Tess holds Grace-Anne.

"I know he's one of my dads but I already call my first daddy my daddy." Brayden looks at Tess, confused. "So what should I call this daddy?"

Tess sighs.

Andie takes Brayden by the hand and sits him on the couch. "Do you know what Harper calls her daddy?"

"What?" Brayden asks.

"She calls him poppa."

"Poppa? Why?" Brayden asks.

"Her daddy likes it. That's what he called his daddy but you can call your daddy anything you like. You can call him daddy, poppy, poppa."

"Oh?" Brayden looks at Andie and thinks. "Maybe I can call him daddy Chase? My daddy at home is just daddy and I can call the new daddy...daddy Chase."

Andie tells him. "Okay. You can do that." Andie looks at Tess for approval. "Right?"

Tess nods. "That's fine." She says, quietly. She needs to think how to explain to Brayden that Damien's not his daddy anymore.

* * *

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	109. Chapter 109

_**CHAPTER 109**_

* * *

Cooper's at the stove stirring his baked beans, he delicately spoons some into his mouth when he feels a pair of thin arms wrap around him. "Careful, careful." He warns. "I'm tasting."

"Can I have a taste?" The voice behind him asks.

Cooper turns around to spoon some of his beans into her mouth.

"So, what do you think?"

"Ya need to add more molasses."

"Are you sure?" He asks.

"Just a lil' more." She swallows the beans, adding.

Cooper obeys, Charlotte watches him. "Just a lil' more. I said, not too much."

Cooper stops and stares at Charlotte a moment with a critical look in his eye.

"What?" Charlotte asks. "What's the look for?"

"Are you trying to sabotage my recipe by making me add more molasses?"

Now Charlotte looks at him with narrowed eyes. "Why would I do a thing like that?"

Cooper cocks his head then straightens it back to normal. "Because Chase is your son and you want his beans to win."

Charlotte lets out a breath and shakes her head before stirring the beans for another taste. "Chase had to go in to the hospital, he's not cooking today. Besides Chase is a big boy now, I don't need to help him cheat against you anymore."

"Aha." Cooper raises his finger up. "But you admit you did help him cheat against me."

Charlotte smacks her lips together. "Maybe once…" She hesitates. "Or twice."

"When? When?" Cooper asks. "Which times?"

"Maybe I helped him with the recipe for the vegetable lasagna."

"I knew it!" Cooper gloats. "You gave him my recipe and then added something to make it just a little bit better. What'd you tell him to add?"

"I'm not telling." Charlotte tastes the beans again. "Perfect."

Cooper holds his hands up. "I have ways of making you tell." He teases.

"What are you going to do to me?" Charlotte teases him back.

"Tell me the secret ingredient or else." Cooper wiggles his fingers in the air at her.

Charlotte looks at his fingers and smiles. "I'll take my chances."

"You asked for it." Cooper grabs Charlotte close to him and begins tickling her.

Charlotte tries not to laugh as she squirms under his touch. She grabs his ass. Cooper lets out a fake yelp.

Drew strolls into the kitchen and looks at his parents. He rolls his eyes before walking out. Charlotte and Cooper look at each other a second.

"Are we bad parents?" Cooper asks.

"No." Charlotte shakes her head. "It's better to see us this way than walk in on us having a screaming match." Charlotte licks the spoon. "The kids know we get along."

"Maybe we get along too well if you know what I mean." Cooper goes back to stirring his beans.

"No," Charlotte watches him. "This one isn't on us. We did everything right. We talked to Drew. This one is on Ruby and her parents. This wasn't us."

"Okay." Cooper nods. "Is Ruby's mother going to be at the barbecue this afternoon?"

"Drew said Ruby might stop by with her."

"Good." Cooper tastes the beans again before saying. "I can't wait to meet her."

* * *

Tess walks back into Chase's house with Brayden and Grace-Ann. She's wearing a short red dress and make-up. "You look so pretty momma, is this a fancy barbecue?"

"It's not fancy, Brayden, I just wanted to look nice."

"Because you wants daddy Chase to think you're pretty?"

Tess thinks minute before answering. "Your daddy has known me since I was in high school, he already knows what I look like."

"Then why are you dressed up so pretty?" Brayden asks.

"Sometimes a mommy feels like dressing up." Tess shrugs. "Now go find that bubble gun your daddy Chase gave you while I get the baby dressed." Tess carries Grace-Anne into the nursery and opens up the closet door. She looks through all the pretty baby-girl dresses and picks out a red and white one. "How bout this one?" She shows Grace.

"Goob-boo." Grace grabs for the dress.

"Hold on, baby girl while…..-" Tess stops. She's not sure how to refer to herself to Grace. She continues. "While I put it on you." Tess takes off the baby's shirt and changes her diaper before dressing her.

"I'm home!" Chase calls out after he walks in the front door.

"In here!" Tess calls from the nursery.

Chase saunters into the nursery. He stops to watch Tess dressing his baby girl up. "Wow, you look so pretty." He admires Tess's short red dress.

"Thanks." Tess smiles and hands him the baby.

Brayden runs into the room. "Can I show Grace my bubble gun?"

"Sure." Chase tells him. He puts Grace on the floor so Brayden can play with her. "Can I talk to you a minute?" He asks Tess.

"Okay." Tess follows Chase into the living room.

"What did you want to talk about?"

"This." Chase pulls Tess into his arms and presses his lips with hers. Tess returns pressing her lips into his, she parts her lips for him.

"Momma!" Brayden calls from the nursery, "Momma!"

Tess and Chase let go of each other and hurry to the nursery. "What's wrong?" Tess asks.

"Nothing, I just wanted to show you the huge bubble I made. It was asas big as a basketball."

"Wow, that big?" Chase pretends to be fascinated.

"Yeah, it was huge." Brayden tells Chase.

"Can you make another one just as big?" Chase sits on the floor next to Brayden.

"I don't know but I'll try." Brayden shakes the bubble gun up.

Tess sits on the floor next to Chase. She pulls Grace-Anne onto her lap. The baby grabs at Tess's necklace.

Chase looks at them and smiles.

"Thank you." Tess mouths to Chase.

"What for?" Chase whispers back.

"For doing this, for humoring Brayden with his bubbles."

"Are you kidding?" Chase tries to catch the bubbles Brayden blows out of his bubble gun. "I love this. This is what I've always wanted. It just feels right."

Tess kisses the top of Grace-Anne's head. "It does feel right."

* * *

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	110. Chapter 110

_**CHAPTER 110**_

* * *

Chase opens the gate letting Tess into Andie's backyard. He enters holding Brayden's hand while Tess carries Grace-Anne. They walk to the direction where Charlotte is helping the kids set up a lemonade stand.

"Wow, you look great." Charlotte tells Tess, noticing Tess's short red dress and makeup.

Cooper walks over to them. "Aren't you a little over dressed for a backyard barbecue?"

Charlotte nudges Cooper. "Ow." Cooper groans.

"They look nice." Charlotte corrects Cooper before reaching out for Grace-Anne. "Come'ere darlin'."

"Hi." Brayden announces to Harper and Charley. "Me and my dad made a lemonade stand once."

Hope rushes over to Brayden. "Hi, wanna play in the sand box with me?" Hope asks.

"No!" Michael Nikolas drags Brayden by the arm. "Come play baseball with me and Charley"

Brayden looks back and forth between Hope and Michael Nikolas and Harper's lemonade stand.

Charlotte can tell the little boy is indecisive.

Brayden looks up at his grandma. "I love baseball. I watch it with my dad." He tells her.

"Oh, yeah?" Charlotte acts interested.

"Our favorite team is the Atlanta Braves."

"You go play baseball with the boys. Harper's quite capable of runnin' the lemonade stand by herself and I'll take Grace-Anne over to play in the sandbox with Hope." Charlotte instructs.

Brayden runs across the yard with the boys, grabbing a baseball glove as he goes.

Cooper sighs. "I hate that he keeps referring to Damien as his dad."

"He's four, Coop, give him time. He has to get to know Chase." Charlotte places Grace-Anne down in the sandbox near Hope.

"Aghhh." Hope screams. "She threw sand at me." Hope starts crying. "It got in my eyes."

"Don't cry." Cooper goes to pick Hope up.

"Cryin's the best thing." Charlotte corrects Cooper. "Her tears will wash the sand out."

Cooper carries Hope into the house. "Be right back chief after I rinse her eyes out."

Charlotte looks down at Grace who's grabbing up sand in her tiny fists and throwing it while laughing. "No more sandbox for you, missy." Charlotte brushes the sand off the one-year-old's hands.

Harper runs over to Charlotte with Rosie. "What happened to Hope?"

"She got a little sand in her eyes; she'll be fine." Charlotte tells the girls. "Now run on."

Harper and her friend Rosie join the boys playing ball. Charlotte watches. "I can't believe they're all mine." She says to herself. She can't help the smile that forms on her face.

Ruby walks into the yard with her mum. She looks around for Drew until she spots him playing baseball with the younger children. Watching him play makes her realize how much of a boy he still is at sixteen.

Charlotte walks up to them. "Drew's playing ball." She tells Ruby.

"Yes, I see," Ruby answers. "I don't want to spoil the game, I'll watch from here."

Charlotte sighs. "Soon Drew will be too busy playing daddy to play baseball."

Ruby swallows hard, looking at Charlotte.

Ruby's mum, Marcy, hands Charlotte a cake.

"Doesn't that look divine." Charlotte comments.

Marcy answers. "I can't take the credit. Ruby and I picked it up on the way. It's from the bakery around the corner."

"It looks like heaven. Let me introduce you to the rest of the family." Charlotte leads Marcy into the house.

Drew spots Ruby sitting at the picnic table by herself. He calls himself out of the game to go sit with her. "I'm glad you came." He gives her a kiss on the cheek.

"I brought my mum." Ruby tells Drew.

"Where is she?"

"Your momma took her inside to meet everyone."

"That's good." Drew grabs Ruby's hand. "Since they're gonna be family."

Ruby swallows. "I need to talk to you."

"What's wrong?" Drew asks.

"My mum wants me to go back to Oz with her."

"You're not going are you?"

Ruby looks at the ground. "I am."

Drew raises his voice in surprise. "Why?" He lowers his voice. "Why Ruby?"

Ruby looks up at him now. "I have too."

"Why? Your mom can't make you." Drew insists. "She can't force you."

Ruby looks into Drew's eyes, "I want to go."

Drew scrunches his forehead. "I don't understand. I thought you were happy here?"

Ruby looks over at the boys playing baseball. "You're not ready to be a dad, Drew. You're sixteen, you should be playing ball and skateboarding and worrying about your grades in school. You shouldn't be thinking about changing diapers and baby formula. It's not fair to do that to you. I'm sorry."

"It's the same for you. You should be surfing and worrying about taking the SAT's. You shouldn't halfta worry about taking care of a baby either."

Ruby takes a deep breath before letting it out heavily. "I did this to myself."

Drew doesn't understand. "What?"

"I'm the one who got pregnant."

"Uh…Ruby…We did it together…It takes two, you know." Drew informs.

Ruby shakes her head. "That's not what I mean."

Drew furrows his brow. "What do you mean then?"

Ruby looks down at the grass. "I wanted a baby. I messed with the condoms. I'm sorry." She keeps her eyes focused on the grass below their feet.

"What?" Drew asks.

Ruby looks up at him for a second to see him staring at her with his mouth open. "I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking about you. I was thinking about me." She looks at the ground again. "It was a selfish thing to do."

Drew stands up with his hands flailing out in front of him. "Why? Why would you want a baby?"

Ruby looks up at him. She tells him with a bit of desperation to her voice, "I had nobody! I was all alone in the world. I wanted to be a part of a family just like yours."

"I can't believe you did this to me!" Drew raises his voice. "I trusted you. I thought you were my best friend."

"I am your best friend, Drew!" Ruby yells out. Now everyone is looking at them.

"Best friends don't do this to each other. They don't try to ruin each others' life." Drew insists.

"I made a mistake. It was wrong. I know that now."

"You just figured that out now?" Drew demands.

"No. I knew it was wrong. I was wrong." Ruby responds. "I'm sorry."

"I can't look at you right now!" Drew walks away.

Harper and Rosie run over to where Drew and Ruby are arguing. "What happened?" Harper and Rosie both ask. Charlotte gathers the girls. "It's not your business, girls, go back to playing." Charlotte tells them.

Drew storms out of the backyard. Charllotte follows her youngest son into the frontyard. "Drew! Drew!" Charlotte catches up with her sixteen year-old son.

Drew turns around; his face is red. "She did it on purpose, momma. She did it on purpose!"

"I know." Charlotte hugs Drew.

"Did she tell you?"

"No. She didn't have to tell me. I knew." Charlotte rubs Drew's back as she hugs him.

"How did you know?" Drew asks his momma.

"Well." Charlotte swallows before she explains. "She was a lil' too happy about it. For a sixteen year old high school student to be that happy I knew it had to be planned."

"I can't believe I was so stupid." Drew rubs his hand over his head. "I should have known."

Charlotte lets go of the hug. "You trusted her."

"I feel like an idiot." Drew rubs his head. "Does everyone else know she tricked me?"

"No." Charlotte shakes her head.

"What do I do know?" Drew leans against his car in the driveway.

"What's done is done." Charlotte tells him. "You're gonna be a daddy whether you wanna be or not. You may wanna kill Ruby right now but you can't take it out on that baby. That baby didn't ask for any of this."

"I know that momma. I'm SO mad at Ruby." Drew grumbles. "She ruined my life. I'm going to be a father at sixteen because she tricked me."

Charlotte rubs Drew's back. "Keep mind the girl has issues. You knew that when you met her."

Drew swallows. "So, you're saying I should have known better? I should have known she would trick me."

"No." Charlotte licks her lips. "I'm tryin' to understand why Ruby did it. I'm not excusin' the girl but I'm trying not to hate her for it."

Drew shakes his head. "I'll never hate Ruby. I still love her but I'm mad as hell at her."

"You have every reason. She lied to you." Charlotte tells him before she notices Ruby and her mother pass them by to go to their car. "You're leaving?" Charlotte walks over to them.

Ruby doesn't turn around. Her mum turns to Charlotte. "I think it's best... considering…-"

"We need to talk about this." Charlotte calls after them.

Ruby's mum walks towards Charlotte. "I'm gonna take Ruby back to Australia with me."

"When are you leaving?" Drew asks.

"Next week, after we finish packing up Ruby's things."

"What about the baby?" Charlotte asks.

Marcy answers. "Ruby will have the baby in Australia. You're welcome to visit; the kids can Skype, and Ruby will be back to visit her dad once a year, you can see the baby then."

Charlotte asks. "Is that gonna be okay with you, Drew?"

Drew shakes his head. "I don't know. My head is spinning with all this new information. I don't know. I need to think about it."

Marcy looks at Drew. "Taking Ruby back to Oz is the best thing for everyone. You can come see the baby whenever you want, and Ruby will Skype with you so you can see the baby."

"What about adoption?" Charlotte asks Marcy.

Marcy answers. "I discussed it with Ruby; she wasn't interested but I'll talk to her about it again when we get back back to OZ after things settle down some."

Charlotte offers, "I'd like to invite you and Ruby over to dinner before you leave."

"I'll talk to Ruby about it." Marcy gives Charlotte a hug goodbye.

* * *

_**Don't forget to leave your review please and have a good day! =)**_


	111. Chapter 111

_**CHAPTER 111**_

* * *

Tess calls Brayden into the bathroom. "What is it momma?"

Tess is struggling with the clasp of her necklace. "Do you think you can help momma clasp her necklace on?"

Tess bends down while holding her shoulder length blond hair out of the way for the four year old to see. "I'll pinch the clasp open, you just have to put the circle on the end into the end of the clasp."

"Otay, momma." After a few tries the necklace is clasped.

Tess stands back up, looks in the mirror and says. "Thanks Bray-Bud. I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Your welcome." Brayden looks at his momma who's dressed up in a short black dress with her make-up done just right. "You look pretty."

"Thank you."

"Where are you going?" The four year-old asks.

"I'm going out to dinner with your dad. You're going to your grandparents. They're watching you and Grace-Anne tonight."

"Can I go with you, momma?"

"No, I need to talk to your daddy. You'll have fun with your grandparents. They're pretty cool people once you get to know them. Grandpa Cooper used to be a pediatrician like your dad."

"What's a peeey-trashman?"

"It's ped-ia-trish-in." Tess enunciates the word. "It's a doctor who specializes in taking care of children."

"Oh." Brayden sounds a little disappointed. I thought he got to ride on the back of a truck."

Tess snickers. "No, he doesn't get to ride on a truck. He's a doctor and he gets to help kids like you."

"Daddy Chase is a children's doctor?"

"Yes." Tess walks back into the bedroom to put her heels on.

"Is he going to be my doctor?"

"No." Tess sits on the bed, slipping one black heel on.

"Why?"

"Because he's your dad. It's good for you to have your own pediatrician who's not your dad."

"Why is he my dad?" Brayden asks in a quiet tone.

Tess looks up at Brayden's face after slipping both her shoes on. "Don't you like him?"

"He's okay but I miss my first dad." Brayden sits on the bed next to his momma.

Tess wraps her arm around Brayden. "I know this is hard for you, baby, but I promise it will get easier."

"What about my first dad? Will I ever get to see him again?"

Tess sighs and hesitates, "If you want to…if you really miss daddy Damien, I can ask him to take you to a Braves game. Would you like that?"

Brayden's eyes light up. "Yeah, Yes please momma!"

Tess smiles at her son. "You really love going to the ball games with your dad, huh?"

"Yeah." Brayden responds. "Daddy buys me popcorn and hot dogs. He said he would try to catch a ball for me at the next game."

Tess takes a breath. "I know you have a lot of fun with your dad…but you'll have fun times like that with Chase too. You just need to get to know him better."

"Does my daddy Chase like the Braves?"

"I don't know." Tess shrugs. There's a kncok at the door. "That's your daddy Chase now. Why don't you answer the door and ask him."

Brayden runs to open the door.

"Hey little man." Chase bends down to pick up his son. "How's it goin'?"

"Good!" Brayden answers. "I want to ask you a question."

"What's that?" Chase asks.

"Do you like the Atlanta Braves?"

Chase looks at Tess. Tess signals him to nod yes.

"I sure do." Chase tells the boy. "Do you?"

"They're my favorite team. If you come to my house we can take you to see a game."

"I'd love that." Chase high fives Brayden.

Tess tells Brayden. "Go get your shoes on, and get your overnight bag. I packed it for you. It's on your bed."

"You look beautiful." Chase gives Tess a soft kiss on the lips after Brayden leaves the room.

After the kiss, Tess smiles. "This feels right."

"It does." Chase kisses her again.

Brayden comes back into the room with his rolling overnight bag. He doesn't say anything before he takes Tess by the arm and pulls her across to the other side of the room.

Tess looks over at Chase. "Excuse us a moment."

Brayden whispers in his momma's ear. "Why were you kissing kissing him?"

Tess quietly answers while Chase looks on from across the room. "Because we like each other. Is that okay with you, mister Bray-Bud."

"I don't like you to kiss him." Brayden whispers.

"Okay." Tess swallows while nodding her head. "Now let's get going. Bring your bag out to the car while momma gets Grace-Anne."

"Otay." Brayden rolls his overnight bag out the front door.

Chase smiles. "He's so cute."

Tess gently flicks Chase's tie. "He gets that from you."

Chase smiles, proudly before asking. "What was he whispering about?"

Tess smirks. "He doesn't like kissing."

"Ah." Chase nods. "I thought that was it, most four year old boys don't."

Tess thinks about it but decides not to tell Chase that Brayden didn't mind when Damien kisses her. "He'll come around in time," she says.

"Probably in about another ten years."

"Huh?" Tess asks as she picks up Grace-Anne.

"In another ten years he wont think kissing is gross."

Tess nudges Chase on the arm as they walk out the door. "Let's not think about ten years from now. Let's take it one step at a time."

"After you, my lady." Chase follows Tess out the front door.

* * *

Ruby knocks on the door of the Freedman's house.

"Hello," Charlotte answers. "I was expecting Chase and Tess with the kids; we're babysittin' tonight."

"Oh," Ruby walks in. "I came to talk to Drew. Is he still mad at me?"

"He's in the kitchen." Charlotte leads the way. Ruby follows Charlotte in the kitchen. Drew's sitting at the kitchen table. He looks up at Ruby but doesn't say anything.

Ruby doesn't bother to sit down. She tells Drew, "I came by to say goodbye. My mum's taking me back to Oz tomorrow night."

"You're really leaving?" Drew asks, surprised.

"Looks that way."

"I don't want you to leave." Drew tells her.

"I thought you hated me now?" Ruby asks. "I thought you never wanted to see me again."

Drew takes a whole minute before answering. "I don't hate you Ruby." He sighs and hesitates before continuing…"It's gotta be a living hell to feel so alone in the world that you needed to get pregnant...but still it wasn't fair to do to me. I didn't get a choice about becoming a father at sixteen."

Ruby nods in agreement. "You're absolutely right. That's why you should hate me, and that's why I'm not fighting my mum about going back to Oz. This way you can continue on with your life as it is. You don't halfta have the responsibility of being a dad at sixteen."

Drew lifts his shoulders. "But I'm still gonna be a dad whether the baby is here or in Australia."

"I'll make sure my baby doesn't interfere with your life. I'm not going to ask for financial support or anything." Ruby shrugs. I'll take care of it with my mum's help"

Charlotte chimes in. "Have you considered adoption as an option? Drew's dad was adopted."

"My mum wants me to consider it." Ruby looks at Charlotte.

"Is _it_ something you're considerin'?" Charlotte asks.

Ruby shakes her head. "I don't think I could do it. I'm attached to the little bug already and I'm only twelve weeks. I don't think I could go nine months and give my baby away. It's just not in me."

Drew stands up, wrapping an arm around Ruby's back. "If you decide to keep the baby I'll be there for you."

"I'd like that." Ruby gives a little smile.

"Do you halfta go back to Oz?" Drew asks with sad eyes.

"You're making me not want to go."

"Then don't." Drew urges.

"Maybe I'll just go back for a little while until the baby is born. You can come visit me." Ruby grabs his hand and swings it.

"I'll miss you."

"We can Skype every night." Ruby tells him. "And you can visit whenever you want."

"I guess." Drew nods. "Part of me wishes your mum never came to see you."

Charlotte gives Drew a look.

Drew catches him momma's look before explaining to Ruby. "But that's the selfish side of me because I want you to stay here."

"Why's that selfish?" Ruby shrugs.

"Because you belong with your family. You have your mum and sister and grandparents in Australia. It's not fair for me to beg you to stay here."

"I don't know." Ruby shakes her head. "I may move back with the baby when I graduate high school. I can go to University here. By then we'll be older; we can see what happens."

Charlotte contributes. "That sounds like an excellent idea."

"Okay." Drew nods. "Can I come visit you when I'm on school break?"

"I'd love that." Ruby smiles.

Charlotte tells Drew. "I'll call the travel agent and make arrangements for it. Your father and I would love to visit Austrailia"

Drew tells Ruby. "So, We'll Skype at least once a day and I'll come visit on my next break."

"Great." Ruby replies.

"I'll walk you to your car." Drew escorts Ruby out the back door when they get out side he pulls Ruby close before pressing her lips into his. After they come up for air Ruby asks, "does that mean you're still my boyfriend?"

"Oh yeah!" Drew laughs.

Ruby hugs Drew as tight as she can. "You're the best dude I know. I don't deserve you."

Drew breaks the hug to tell his girlfriend, "that's the problem, Ruby, you don't know it but you deserve the best things in life." He wisks a strand of hair out of her eyes.

"I have the best." She gives him a gentle kiss on the lips before he opens her car door for her.

She raises her eyebrows. "Ya wanna go for a ride?"

It doesn't take Drew s second before answering. "Oh, yeah!" He runs to the other side of the car and hops in the passneger seat. "Where we going?"

Ruby starts up the car. "How bout we get something for snack and then go somewhere we can be alone?"

"Let's go!" Drew smiles like an excited sixteen year-old.

* * *

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	112. Chapter 112

_**CHAPTER 112**_

* * *

Chase and Tess look over their menus at the French Bistro. Tess looks around. "They did a good job with the décor. I feel like I'm back in Paris."

Chase looks up from his menu. "When were you in Paris?"

Tess thinks maybe she shouldn't have said that but she can't deny her relationship with Damien. "Damien took me to Paris for my birthday."

"Really?" Chase picks up his water glass. "Did you like it?"

"It was unbelievable." Tess tells him. "You…I mean…_we_…should go some time."

Chase asks. "Did you and Damien go a lot of places together?"

"We did." Tess nods. "We had a lot of adventures; Damien likes to go river-rafting and mountain biking. I became quite the adventurer while I was dating him."

"So, why did you stop?" Chase asks, his voice sounds a slight bit agitated. "Did you break up only because I called you?"

Tess shakes her head. "I don't think Damien and I would've worked out long term anyway."

"Why?"

Tess explains. "Damien tried to be a good dad to Brayden; he really did." Tess puts her glass down. "He taught him about baseball and took him fishing. He coached Brayden's t-ball team, and bought him all kinds of baseball clothes but there were times where he would just lose it."

Chase puts his menu down. "What do you mean?"

Tess explains. "Damien wasn't used to being around little kids when I met him so when Brayden did some things that come along with having young children like wetting the bed or writing on the wall, Damien would lose his temper on Brayden."

"What did he do?" Chase asks.

"He would yell at Brayden, call him a baby, and make Brayden feel bad. Brayden would cry, and then I would cry but then later Damien would be really sorry and make it up to us. He'd buy us gifts or take us somewhere fun."

Chase grits his teeth. "Did he ever lay a hand on my son?"

"No." Tess assures. "I would never let Damien harm Brayden."

"Okay." Chase answers. "But the idea of that jerk yelling at my son makes me want to hit someone. Why were you with a guy like that?"

Tess looks at Chase. "He reminded me of you at first."

"Of me?" Chase looks surprised. "I'm not like that."

"I know." Tess giggles a minute, realizing she insulted Chase. "I meant in looks, he was tall, dark and handsome like you, and he was really nice when I first met him. He treated me well but I knew he wasn't crazy about Brayden being around because he's my son with someone else…well, you,…. but I thought after he got to know Brayden things would get better."

"Did they?"

"Like I said, Damien tried but he shouldn't have had to try so hard... it should have came natural to him like with Grace-Anne and me. Grace isn't my biological daughter but I love that little banana of yours. I can't wait to hold her again and to dress her up in those fancy little dresses in her closet. I just wanna love her and protect her. But Damien didn't have that feeling with Brayden and that's what I realized too late."

"Why was it too late?" Chase asks.

"Because Brayden thinks of Damien as his dad. Brayden didn't know you until two weeks ago, Damien's the only father he's known up until now. And..." Tess sighs, "Brayden is very confused about our situation. It's hard to explain this all to a four-year-old."

"I know." Chase nods.

"I think we both need to sit down with him and explain it the best we can." Tess takes a sip of her water.

"I'm actually scared," Chase admits.

"Why?" Tess bats her eyes. "Brayden isn't scary."

"Once we tell him the whole story, what if he hates me for hurting you? What if he doesn't want me to be his dad because of what I did?"

Tess carefully searches his face. "I didn't mean we have to tell him I caught you screwing Michelle in your office. Brayden's four; he has no idea what cheating and sex are. He doesn't need the details."

"I understand that," Chase asserts, quick to add, "But he'll know I did something bad to you to force you leave and not tell him I was his father until now. " He takes a deep breath and confesses, "I guess I'm just worried that this conversation won't go well and he'll hate me for hurting his momma."

"Chase," Tess begins, reaching across the table to smooth out his shirt collar. "You're bein' a little over-dramatic here, don't you think? He's a four-year-old boy; if I'm willing to forgive you so will he."

"Do you forgive me?" Chase gives her a hangdog look. "Do you really?"

"I forgive you." She flashes him a smile. "Consider yourself very lucky."

Chase can't help but smile now. "I do, believe me I do."

Tess decides to tell him. "Ya know I missed you like crazy."

Chase's eyes light up "You really did?"

"Thought about you every time I looked into Brayden's baby blues."

"I missed you too, more than you could ever imagine. I never stopped loving you."

"Did Michelle pick up on that?"

"Oh yeah…we had a long talk about it after I called her Tess while we were having sex."

Tess's eyes pop wide open. "You didn't?'

Chase nods. "I did."

"How mad was she?"

"I don't think she was mad, it was more like hurt. It happened before we got married."

"And she still wanted to marry you knowing you were hung up on me?"

"Yep. She was still hung up on her ex so we sorta bonded over it."

Tess asks, "sort of like if you can't be with the one you love then love the one your with?"

"Exactly." Chase sips on his water.

"I think that's how it was for me and Damien too. At least it was like that for me since I couldn't be with the man I loved most."

Chase puts his water glass down." And who would that be?" he teases her.

Tess smiles.

Chase pulls a small jewelry box out of his pocket.

"What is that?" Tess asks, surprised.

Chase opens it up to reveal Tess's engagement ring, the one she left on his desk five years ago.

"You kept it?" Tess asks.

"Of course." Chase carefully takes the ring out of the box. "I know we just got back together two weeks ago but I want you to have the ring."

Tess stares at it, it's been a while since she'd laid eyes on her diamond ring.

Chase swallows, holding the ring between his fingers. "You don't have to wear it or maybe you could wear it on the right hand if you want for now."

"Ask me." Tess tells him.

"Huh?" Chase looks up at her.

"Ask me again."

Chase swallows. "Will you marry me, Tess Marie Powers?"

Tess smiles and nods. "Yeah.'

Chase slips the ring on Tess's finger before leaning over the table to kiss his fiancé.

After the kiss, Tess looks at her ring, back on her finger. "It still fits."

"Wow." He grins "That was fast. I thought you wanted to wait."

"Why wait?" Tess shrugs. "I've loved you all along. That's never gonna change."

"Agreed." Chase smiles before the waiter comes over to take their order.

* * *

_**Review and have a great day! =)**_


	113. Chapter 113

_**CHAPTER 113**_

* * *

He's been back in her life for just over three weeks; she can't get enough of him so when he asks her out to dinner for the third night in a row she accepts. They haven't had much alone time so Tess is hoping after this date they can spend some quality time together while the children hang with their grandparents. Tess sits across from him in the dimly lit Italian restaurant. "Oooh, that looks good." She squeals as she watches the waiter unload a plate of ravioli stuffed with portabella mushrooms smothered in cream sauce in front of Chase.

He scoops up a forkful and lifts it up to her lips. "Taste."

Tess licks her red painted lips. "Mmmm...so good,...here; try some of mine." She spoons a seasoned scallop into his mouth.

"That's good too." He reaches for his fork again "But I like mine better." He teases.

"I agree." Tess nids. "I should've got the ravioli. Not that my food is bad but yours is sooo much better."

"I'll share." Chase gathers another forkful of ravioli for her.

"You're a good man, Chase Freedman, your parents raised you well." Tess watches him.

Chase chuckles. "Why? Because I'm willing to share my ravioli with you... I'll share anything with _you_."

"Good." Tess chuckles before she bites into her ravioli. Her phone buzzes. She looks at the number.

"Aren't you going to answer it?" Chase asks.

"I'll call them back later." Tess sips her wine.

"Who was it?" Chase asks.

Tess pauses before answering. "Nobody."

"Nobody buzzes your phone a lot."

"Fine." Tess concedes. "It's Damien but I don't want to talk to him."

"What does he want?" Chase asks.

Tess shrugs. "He probably wants to get back together."

"When's the last time you talked to him?"

Tess takes a deep breath. "I haven't spoke to him since I came to LA.'

"Why not?"

"Why would I? We're broken up. I have nothing to say to him."

"But didn't you live with him in Georgia?"

Tess nods her head.

"You're going to need to talk to him again even if it's just to move your things out of his house."

"I'll move it out when he's at work." Tess shrugs. "He's away on business most of the week; I'll do it then."

Chase furrows his brow. "Are you afraid of him or something?"

"No." Tess scoffs. "I'm not afraid of him."

"Then why can't you talk to him? Why can't you move your stuff if he's at home?"

"I'll talk to him when I'm ready. Now feed me some more of that ravioli." Tess grins as she sneaks the last piece of ravioli off his plate with her fork.

"Hey!" Chase protests, teasing. "Give that back. It's the last piece."

"We'll share it." Tess cuts it in half. Tess feed Chase his half.

* * *

Cooper pushes Grace-Anne in her stroller while Charlotte talks to Brayden as they walk through the park. "Your grandpa and I were thinking of taking you to a movie tonight would you like that?"

"Yeah, I have to ask my momma first." Brayden responds looking up at Charlotte.

"Your momma already said it was okay." Charlotte assures the four-year old. "She's going out with your daddy tonight so you get to hang out with us."

"What about Grace?" Brayden peeks into her stroller. "She's too little to go to the movies."

"We're going to leave her at Aunt Andie and Uncle Nicky's house, and we're going to take your cousins Harper, Charley, Michael and Hope to the movies with us."

"We're going to need to take two cars with that brood." Cooper informs.

"Already got it covered." Charlotte assures. "Andie said we could take her mini van. It seats eight."

"It's like a trade!" Brayden exclaims. "We give them Grace and we take Harper, Charley, Michael and Hope."

Cooper scrunches his forehead. "It doesn't seem like a very fair trade. We give them one baby and we get four kids in return."

"This is gonna be fun!" Brayden's face lights up with excitement. "One time my daddy took me and my friends to see the Braves game. He buyed us cotton candy and slushies."

Charlotte and Cooper exchange glances. They know the daddy that he's referring to is Damien.

"So, you're a Braves fan?" Cooper asks.

"Yep! They're my favorite team. My dad's too."

"Okay." Charlotte says. "Look Brayden, there's the swings."

"Race ya!" Brayden tells her.

"Oh no, Sugar." Charlotte answers. "I don't race." Charlotte notices a tall dark haired man seated on a bench abruptly stand up.

"Daddy!" Brayden quickly scampers over to the man. "Daddy! I missed you."

Damien scoops Brayden up into his arms. "Me too, little buddy."

Charlotte's heart thumps. She quickly walks over to them. Cooper hurries quickly behind, pushing the stroller.

Charlotte remains calm. She extends her hand out to Damien. "I'm Dr. Charlotte King."

Damien places Brayden back down on the grass. "I remember you. You're Chase Freedman's mother."

Cooper extends his hand to Damien. "And I'm Chase's father. Do Chase and Tess know that you're here?"

"Do you think they'd let you bring Brayden to the park if they knew I was here?"

"_Why_ are you here?" Charlotte asks.

"This park is one of Brayden's favorite places to come whenever we visit her father in LA. I figured if I sat here long enough he'd show up."

"Wouldn't it be easier to just call Tess?" Charlotte suggests.

"I've left fifty messages for Tess. I've called her father…"

Cooper interrupts. "What do you want from Tess? Maybe we can help you."

Damien shrugs. "I want a lot of things from Tess. I wanna see Brayden. I want an explanation of what's going on. She just left Georgia and hasn't bothered to call and let me know what's happening."

"We'll give her the message." Charlotte tells Damien.

Damien looks down at Brayden. "Do you wanna go on the swings, Bray-Bud?"

"Yeah!" Brayden exclaims. "I'll race ya"

"You got it, buddy." Damien and Brayden take off running to the swings. Charlotte hastens her pace to keep up with them.

"Relax, Chief. They're only going to the swings." Cooper calls after Charlotte as he tries to keep up.

"I'll keep an eye on them. You call Tess and tell her Damien's here." Charlotte orders.

Chase finishes paying the bill just as Tess phone rings again. "Is it him again?" Chase asks.

Tess looks at the phone. "No, it's your momma." Tess answers the phone. "Hello."

"Tess, it's me." Charlotte barks into the phone in a very serious tone.

"Is everything okay? Is Brayden okay?" Tess wonders why Charlotte sounds so serious.

"Damien's here. He's pushing Brayden on the swing now."

"Oh my god." Tess's heart drops and she feels her hands start to shake.

"What do you want me to do?" Charlotte asks.

"Don't let him take Brayden."

"I won't." Charlotte assures her. "I won't."

"I'll be right there." Tess hangs up.

"What's wrong?" Chase asks. He can see that Tess is shaken up.

"Damien's at the park with Bray-Bud! I have to go!" Tess rushes out of the restaurant.

"Wait for me!" Chase follows her.

* * *

_**REVIEW**_


	114. Chapter 114

_**CHAPTER 114**_

* * *

Tess's heart races. "Can you get there any faster?"

"I'm going as fast as I can in this traffic." Chase drives. "Should we call the police?"

Tess takes out her phone. "Let me call your momma to see what's happening."

Charlotte pulls her buzzing phone out of her pocket. "Hey." She knows it's Tess.

"Is everything okay? Are they still there?" Tess asks, her voice flowing with panic.

"Everything is fine. I told you I wouldn't let them leave. Damien would have to walk over my dead body to take Brayden." Charlotte informs.

"Okay." Tess calms down. "What are they doing?"

"Damien's pushing Brayden on the swing. It looks like they're having a good time."

"Chase and I are almost there."

"Don't kill yourself gettin' here, everyone's fine."

"Good." Tess hangs up and waits for Chase to find a parking spot.

After they park Chase and Tess jump out of the car, slamming their doors. Tess pauses for a moment, taking a deep breath.

"Are you okay?" Chase asks.

Tess nods. "I'm trying to relax. Your momma said everything's fine. I don't want Brayden to think I'm upset."

"Okay." Chase pats her on the back. They walk slowly towards the park entrance until they see Charlotte standing near a bench.

"You got here fast." Charlotte says as she approaches the couple.

"Thanks for calling us, momma." Chase spots Damien pushing his son on the swing about twenty feet away. "Where's Grace-Anne?"

"She was scutchy so your dad took her for a walk."

Tess takes another long deep breath. "I better go talk to Damien."

"I'll go with you." Chase offers.

"That's not a good idea." Tess responds. "I don't want a confrontation in front of Brayden. He doesn't need to see his dads fight."

"Okay," Chase nods, "then I'll be right here if you need me." Chase sits on the bench. He has a full view of the swings.

Tess asks Charlotte, "do you mind coming along? I might need you to...-"

"You got it." Charlotte doesn't let her finish the sentence.

The two women calmly walk over to the swings.

"Momma!" Brayden yells out. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see you." Tess calls back.

"I thought you were going on a date?"

"Change of plans." Tess glances at Damien.

"Look momma! Daddy's here!" Brayden tells Tess.

"I see that." Tess answers, keeping an eye on Damien.

"Well, don't you look nice all gussied up." Damien says to Tess. "Must be a hot date."

Tess blurts out. "What are you doing here Damien?"

"What do ya think?" Damien quips.

Tess pulls the chain on Brayden's swing to stop it. She tells Brayden. "I want you to go for a walk with grandma Charlotte. I need to talk to your daddy a minute."

Brayden protests. "But I wanna stay on the swing! Look! Daddy taught me a trick to make me swing really high like a big kid."

"I need to talk to daddy." Tess tells him again. "It's very important."

Damien suggests. "How about if your grandma pushes you on the swing while I talk to your momma in the car?"

"Okay." Brayden agrees.

Charlotte looks at Tess. "Is that gonna be okay with you?"

"It's fine." Tess answers. "You stay with Brayden. I'll be back in a little bit."

Charlotte takes her place behind the swing while she watches Tess and Damien walk off.

Chase watches them from the bench. He strolls over to the swings with his hands in his pockets, asking Charlotte. "What's going on?"

"Damien and Tess are havin' a talk so I'm watching Brayden."

"Are they having a talk or having a fight?" Chase asks.

"They were doin' okay when they left." Charlotte pushes they swing. "Tess can handle herself," she assures Chase.

Brayden offers. "Sometimes my momma and daddy fight."

"They do?" Chase asks "What do they fight about?"

"Different stuff." Brayden shrugs as he pumps his legs to go higher on the swing. "But then they get happy again and kiss."

"That's usually how it works." Charlotte pushes the swing. "Makin' up is the best part of fightin'."

"Momma?" Chase protests.

* * *

Damien and Tess stand by his car. "Why haven't you returned my calls?" Damien asks. "_Or_... my texts, _or_ my emails?"

"I've been busy since I got here, Damien." Tess keeps her left hand in hidden behind her sweater to hide the diamond engaement ring she's wearing.

"Too busy doing what? Going on dates?"

"No." Tess responds. "I've been busy trying to help Brayden get to know Chase."

"Doesn't look that way to me." Damien tries to keep his voice down. "You weren't even with Brayden. You were out with Chase. It looks to me like _you're_ the one trying to get to know Chase."

"We went out to talk."

"Dressed like that?" Damien looks over Tess in her little black dress. "That's a date dress, it's not a talk dress."

"What do you want me to say, Damien?"

"Are you cheating on me with Chase?"

"I'm not cheating on you because we're over Damien. We broke up."

"Since when?"

"Since we had that fight at your house when you threw me on the bed, _and_ since I found out you told Chase that _you_ were Brayden's father."

"That's bullshit. _I_ am Brayden's father. I've been taking care of the boy since he was a baby when Chase didn't want to be around him."

"No Damien, that's not right. Chase didn't know about Brayden; if he knew about Brayden he would have been in his life since day one."

"None of that is my fault. You can't pin that on _me_" Damien insists. "_You_ left Chase and moved to Georgia because the scumbag cheated on you."

"You know what you did, Damien." Tess folds her arms against her chest.

"Tell me what _I_ did wrong!" Damien demands.

Tess sighs, annoyed that she has to repeat herself, before continuing, "you told Chase _you_ were Brayden's father after my momma died. Brayden was one years old then; he could have gotten to know his father back then if you would have told Chase the truth."

"And you would have ran right back into Chase's arms!" Damien raises his voice.

"No!" Tess answers. "Chase was married to Michelle; she was pregnant with their first baby at the time. I wouldn't have ran into Chase's arms. I would have wanted to be in your arms, but you lied. What you did was just as bad as Michelle hiding the letter."

"No way! It was not!'

"Yes it was!" Tess gets louder. "Michelle started the lie but you kept it going! You could have told me Chase asked you if he was Brayden's father but instead you lied and told him _you _were his father. I can't forgive that!"

"You ungrateful bitch!" Damien yells.

"I'm done!" Tess starts to walk away.

Damien follows her and grabs her by the elbow. "Do you know how much I've done for you these past few years?"

"Let go of me, Damien, or I'll scream."

"Bitch," Damien lets go of her arm, giving her a little shove. Tess stumbles, breaking one of her high heels as she falls to the pavement.

"Are you okay?" An older woman rushes over.

"I'm fine." Tess picks up her broken heel, looking at it.

"Do you want me to call the police?"

"No. I'm fine."

"You scraped your knee. I might have a band-aid in my car." The older woman offers. "Would you like to come with me?"

"No." Tess shakes her head. "Thank you, but I'm okay." Tess tells the woman as she looks at Damien.

Damien extends a hand out to help Tess up. "Sorry about that. I didn't mean to make you fall."

Tess looks at the older woman. "I'm okay, really, you can go."

"Okay." The older woman watches them as she walks away.

Tess takes her other shoe off so she's standing on even ground. "These were new shoes." She tells Damien. "You made me break my heel."

"Look, I'm sorry I'll buy you another pair of shoes...-"

Tess shakes her head. "I don't want another pair of shoes, Damien. You need to get your anger under control before you really hurt someone. It's not good."

"Here." Damien takes Tess's hand. "Come with me. I have samples of medical supplies that my company is selling in my car. I'll patch up your knee."

"So, you're in LA on business?" Tess asks Damien, surprised. "You didn't come to LA because of me and Brayden?"

"Both." Damien tells her as they approach his car. "I wanted to come see you so I made it into a business trip. I sold some new supplies to St. Ambrose today. They have a new chief of staff now. I guess Dr. King retired."

"Yeah." Tess nods. "She's a full time grandma now."

Damien opens his car door and takes out the small box of medical supplies. "Sit here." He helps Tess into the passenger seat. He gently dabs the blood off her knee with a soft gauze. "Thanks you." Tess says.

Damien looks up, giving her a small smile before he gently blows on her knee.

"Don't do that, Damien." Tess instructs. "I really just need a bandaid."

Damien talks in a calm soothing voice as he swirls antibiotic cream over her knee with his finger. "I'm sorry, Tess, but don't you think that I have a right to be mad? We've been together for four years. I did everything for you. You lived in my house, you didn't even have to work. I supported you and Brayden and now you're just going to leave me for Chase? Brayden's going to forget all about me." Damien starts to show tears in his eyes now.

Tess watches him spread the ointment on her knee. "It's because you lied, Damien." She says, softly. "I wish you didn't lie about being Bray-Bud's father." Tess continues.

"I was protecting you and Brayden from his real father." Damien defends. "I thought I was doing the right thing by keeping Chase out of your and Brayden's life."

"No." Tess shakes her head and explains. "What Chase did to me was wrong, very wrong, but Chase is an incredible father. It's been his dream to be a dad since he was a kid. It wasn't right to keep Brayden from having his father in his life. That's the problem, Damien. That's what I can't forgive."

"So that's it? I lie about one thing and it's over?" Damien places a bandage over Tess's knee. "I don't get a second chance?"

Tess widens her eyes. "It wasn't a little white lie, Damien. It was a life changing lie."

"I'm sorry, Tess." Damien pleads. "What else do you want me to do? I can't change it now. What can I do for you to forgive me?"

Tess sighs deeply. "I don't know. We just have to take things one day at time a time, I guess."

"So, you're saying you will forgive me?" Damien asks.

"Things get better in time. Right now, I'm still blown away that you lied to me."

"I'll do the time." Damien helps Tess stand up from the car.

"I'm gonna go see Brayden now." Tess tells him as she starts to walk away.

"Wait up!" Damien follows her. "I wanna say goodbye to Bray-Bud. I've really missed the little bug."

Tess walks with Damien. "He misses you too."

"Really?" Damien's surprised.

"Yeah. He keeps talking about you to Chase. He tells Chase about how you take him to the Brave's games. He tells everyone how he misses his daddy in Georgia."

Damien can't help but grin. "I bet that pisses Freedman off."

Tess raises up her eyebrows. She doesn't want to tell Damien just how much she knows it hurts Chase. They approach the swings.

"Momma!" Brayden jumps off the swing to hug Tess. "You're back!"

"I am." Tess bends down to hug Brayden.

"What happened to your knee and your shoe?" Brayden looks at the shoe with the broken heel Tess is holding in her hand.

"I fell in the parking lot, but I'm okay." Tess ruffles Brayden's hair.

Charlotte and Chase exchange glances.

"Are you okay?" Chase asks Tess.

"Yeah." Tess brushes it off. "I'm good."

Damien picks Brayden up. "I have to go back to Georgia in a few days but how about me and you have lunch together tomorrow and then come to the park to play a game of catch?"

"Yeah!" Brayden shouts. "I want to."

Damien looks at Tess. "Is that okay with you, momma?"

Tess looks at Brayden. She knows he's excited about the idea.

"Please momma? I want to go to lunch with daddy and then play catch at the park with him."

Tess hesitates before saying. "Okay, but I'll have to come with you."

"That's okay." Brayden tells his momma.

Damien puts Brayden back down on the grass before hugging him goodbye. "Okay little buddy, I'll call your momma later with the details." Damien gives Tess a soft kiss on the cheek. "Bye baby, see ya tomorrow." Damien glances at Chase with a grin on his face before he walks away.

"What's going on?" Chase asks Tess.

"What do you mean?" Tess pulls him away by the arm so that they're out of Brayden's earshot.

"Why did you agree to go out to lunch with Damien tomorrow?"

"I don't want to send Brayden with him alone." Tess answers in a hushed voice.

"Why?" Chase is sounding a bit annoyed.

"I don't trust Damien. Damien knows that you and I are giving it another go."

"You told him we were engaged?"

"No." Tess shakes her head. "He knows we were on a date tonight, and he saw how I'm dressed. If he saw my ring, he didn't say anything." Tess continues. "He's mad as hell and I'm worried he could take Brayden and run. I'm probably being over protective but I can't take a chance with my son."

"_Our_ son." Chase reminds.

"Our son." Tess agrees.

"Why didn't you just say no? You could have told Brayden no to lunch and the park."

"But you saw how excited Brayden was."

"He's going to have to get used to the idea that I'm his father, not Damien."

"It's going to take time Chase. We've been living with Damien for the past three years. How do I tell Brayden he can't see the person he thought was his dad again? Brayden loves Damien."

Chase raises his eyebrows while shaking his head. "I have no idea why."

"That's all he knows." Tess responds. "After he spends time with you he'll know how a good man treats a woman. He'll come to it on his own and want to be around you instead of Damien."

"And what do we do in the meantime?" Chase asks.

"We take one day at a time."

Chase nods before asking. "How did you break your heel?"

"I told you I fell in the parking lot."

Chase scrunches his face. "Seriously? You only had one glass of wine at dinner."

"I was arguing with Damien, and he grabbed my arm. I told him to let go; he pushed me away and I fell."

Chase shakes his head. "That's…-"

"I'm fine, Chase."

"I'm sorry." Chase moves in to hug Tess.

"For what?"

"For everything. I wish you never got involved with Damien, and I know it's my fault."

"How is it your fault?" Tess asks.

"If I didn't cheat, you wouldn't have left and met him…-"

"Nothing we can do about any of that now. We take it one day at a time. Baby steps." Tess tells him.

"Let's get Brayden and go home." Chase gives Tess a little kiss on the forehead.

"There goes our romantic evening alone tonight." Tess grabs Chase's hand as they walk back to the swings.

"There's always tomorrow night." Chase squeezes her hand with a smile.

"Good." Tess smiles back. "I'll count on it."

* * *

_**Review and have a nice day! =)**_


	115. Chapter 115

_**A/N-** Sorry it took so long to update. I had to add a few chapters, and this has been a very busy month for me with little time to write. Hope y'all enjoy this chapter. =)_

* * *

Tess spots Damien sitting in a corner booth at the family style restaurant. She leads Brayden by the hand to see Damien. "Daddy." Brayden shouts out in excitement.

"Hey, little man, give me five!" Damien reaches his hand out to slap with Brayden's.

"We missed you so much, daddy." Brayden leans in to give Damien a hug.

"You did?" Damien squeezes Brayden back before looking over at Tess.

"He can't stop talking about you." Tess assures Damien.

"Good." Damien smiles.

Tess tells Brayden. "Why don't you go play in the kids area while I talk to your daddy."

"Okay. Order me the chicken fingers." Brayden says, before running off to play.

Tess sits down across from Damien. "Brayden really does miss you. You're the only father he's ever known."

"Doesn't he like Chase?" Damien picks up his water to sip.

"Chase is easy to like." Tess answers. "But Brayden knows _you_ as his father. It's going to be an adjustment for him to get used to calling Chase daddy."

Damien takes a deep breath. "Look, I know I should have told Chase a few years ago when he called but I was afraid of losing you…-"

Tess puts her hand up to interrupt. "We've been through this before, Damien. I know you're sorry but we need to figure out a way to fix this _now_ for everyone."

"I still want to see Brayden." Damien asserts. "I know I'm not his _real_ dad but I feel like I am and I don't want him cut out of my life."

"Wow." Tess widens her eyes.

"Why are you surprised?"

"I didn't know you cared _that_ much about Brayden. I thought you accepted him because he was part of a package deal."

"At first." Damien admits. "I wasn't crazy about the idea of the little rugrat coming between us but I've grown to love the little fella. He's part of my life. I don't want that to stop because _you're_ mad at me."

Tess sighs and thinks before answering. "I don't want to cut you out of Brayden's life. Brayden loves and admires you…-"

Damien interrupts this time. "So, you're coming back to Georgia?"

"I am." Tess nods. "But Chase is coming too, with his daughter."

"What?" Damien's jaw drops. "Why?"

"Chase also wants to be a father to Brayden."

"Are you getting back together with him?" Damien asks, directly.

Tess takes a deep breath before answering. "Yes. Chase and I are giving it another go."

Damien clenches his jaw shut tight. Before he gets to say anything, Tess tells him. "I do love you Damien. You'll always hold a special place in my heart but…-"

"But what?" Damien asks.

"We wouldn't have worked out anyway, even if it weren't for Chase coming back in my life."

"Why?" Damien demands. "How can you say that? We were fine."

"We weren't fine." Tess reponds. "I was already planning to leave you before I came to LA."

"Why?"

"Because of your temper." Tess responds. "I had my bags packed and not because of Chase but because of _you_. I didn't appreciate you throwing me on the bed and attempting to…-"

Damien cuts her off again. "I didn't rape you so don't even say it."

"You didn't go through with it but you wanted to. You were wrestling with me to get my pants down."

Damien shakes his head. "It wasn't about the sex, Tess. That's why I stopped."

"I know it wasn't about the sex. It was about power. You wanted to show me you would win the argument because you're stronger than me."

"But I didn't do it. I stopped before…-"

"It doesn't matter, Damien. It scares me that you have that kind of rage in you. I'm glad you stopped but what if you can't stop yourself next time. You scare me sometimes with your temper. I can't do it anymore."

"I'm sorry." Damien sighs deeply with tears in his eyes. "I know I have a temper and I'm really trying to get control over it ."

Tess takes Damien's hand. "I know you're trying, and I love the way you've been there for Brayden. I don't want that to stop. I want you to keep being his t-ball coach. I want you to keep taking him to the Braves games."

"How will Chase like that?" Damien asks.

"Chase will have to adjust to having you in Brayden's life. He knows Brayden thinks of you as his father."

Damien nods before looking up at the older couple approaching his table.

"How's it goin'?" Charlotte drawls. Cooper's standing by her side.

"We're good." Tess gives a little smile.

"That's good." Cooper watches them with his hands in his pockets.

Tess clears her throat before asking. "Did Chase ask you to check up on me?"

"No, uhm, no…no of course not." Cooper utters.

Charlotte snickers while nudging Cooper. "You're a terrible liar."

"Tell Chase everything is just fine." Tess assures. "As soon as we finish lunch we're taking Brayden to the park and then I'll be home."

"Where is Brayden?" Charlotte asks.

"Over there in the children's play area." Tess points. She notices Brayden is playing with Hope.

Charlotte looks around to see Andie sitting at a table with Harper and Charley. "Looks like a family reunion, huh?"

"Not really." Cooper shrugs. "We're missing, Chase, Noah, Marley, Drew and most of our grandchildren."

Charlotte rolls her eyes at Cooper before telling Tess and Damien. "Have a nice lunch." Charlotte pulls Cooper over to Andie's table.

"They seem like a nice family." Damien tells Tess.

"I've known them since I was sixteen. I felt like I was part of the Freedman family until Michelle came along and...-"

"That girl caused a lot of trouble." Damien breaks a piece of bread, handing it to Tess.

"You're tellin' me." Tess agrees.

"I guess we shouldn't speak ill of the dead." Damien adds. "It's a helluva lot better to be alive. Makes our problems seem like peanuts considerin' the alternative."

"That's right." Tess nods. "I think we're all gonna be alright."

"I sure hope so." Damien bites into his bread.

"We will. We just need to take it one step at a time and see where that takes us."

Brayden runs over to the table. "Grandma Charlotte is here! Did you see her?" He asks them.

"We sure did." Damien tells him.

"I like her a lot." Brayden tells Tess and Damien.

"You're grandma Charlotte seems to be one amazing lady from what I can tell." Damien bites into his bread.

"I'm glad we found her." Brayden takes a bite of Damiens bread. "Are you?"

"As long as you're happy then I'm happy little buddy."

Tess stares at Damien with wonder.

"What?" Damien looks at her.

"You _are_ a real dad."

Damien smiles. "That's because of this little fella." He tousles Brayden's hair.

* * *

_**REVIEWS are nice! =)**_


	116. Chapter 116

**CHAPTER** 116

* * *

Cooper pushes Brayden on the swing while Charlotte pushes Hope. "Higher, higher, higher!" Brayden shouts in a high pitched playful voice, kicking his legs in the air to propel his swing faster.

"Me too, nan!" Hope squeals to her grandma Charlotte. "Higher!"

"I don't think so." Charlotte answers. "I don't wanna bring anyone home in a cast today."

Cooper laughs. "Aww, you're no fun, grandma." He continues to push Brayden.

"Is that my dad?" Brayden asks, appearing wide-eyed.

To Charlotte's surprise, it's Chase walking towards them with an apparatus of some sort in his hand. "That's your dad." She confirms.

"Dad!" Brayden jumps off the swing, running up to greet Chase.

It's hard for Chase not to smile from ear to ear at the sound of his son calling him dad.

"What's that?" Brayden studies the plastic winged object in Chase's hand.

Hope jumps off her swing now and runs over to meet up with them. "Is that a helicopter?"

"Yes, ma'am," Chase replies, standing proudly while holding the motorized toy out to show the eager youngsters. "What do you think? Do you want to try it out?"

Brayden gazes up at the shiny toy in his dad's hands. "Can I try it first?" He asks, eagerly.

Chase looks at little Hope before telling Brayden. "It's polite for a gentleman to let a lady go first."

"Oh." Brayden answers with disappointment. "But I'm not a gentleman and Hope is a girl, she's not a lady."

Charlotte, Cooper and Chase get a chuckle out of that.

"It's okay. You can go first, Brayden." Hope offers.

"You do it." Brayden takes the helicopter out of Chase's hand and passes it to Hope. "You're a little lady."

Chase gives Hope a brief lesson on how to fly the toy helicopter with the remote while Brayden listens.

"Go Hope... Go Hope... Go Hope" Brayden chants in a loud, sing song voice while his cousin operates the helicopter with the hand held remote. After two minutes Brayden asks, "is it my turn yet?"

"Okay." Hope hands the remote to Brayden.

"How'm I doing?" Brayden asks the adults.

"You're doing great, kid" Charlotte holds her hand over her eyes to shield them from the sun.

"I'm gonna make it do a spin." Brayden announces, flinging the remote around and pulling the lever. After watching the helicopter spin out of control they run for cover as it dives toward the ground.

"Watch out!" Cooper yells as the flying plastic nose dives hastily toward them.

"Owwww!" Hope screams while holding her hand over her face. "Waah!" She squeals. "It hurts!"

"Hope got hit!" Cooper shouts.

"I'm sorry." Brayden rushes over to his cousin.

Chase runs over to Hope now too. "Can I take a look?" He gently pulls her hand away from her face. Blood is trickling from her nose.

"She's bleeding!" Brayden panics. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to hurt her."

"It's okay." Charlotte tries to calm him. "Your daddy will take care of Hope."

"But she's bleeding. A lot!" Brayden points with tears in his eyes now.

"Your daddy is a good doctor. He knows what to do."

Chase orders Cooper. "Dad, go to the ice cream truck over there and get some paper towels and ask him to give you some ice."

"Got it." Cooper obeys. Being a pediatrician with far many more years experience than his son he knows how to help his hurt granddaughter but he decides to let Chase take the spot light on this one.

"It's okay." Chase tries to calm a hysterical Hope. "I'm going to tilt your head back a little to help stop the bleeding."

"Is she going to be okay?" Brayden asks, nervously.

"She's going to be better than okay." Chase winks at Brayden.

Cooper rushes back over with the paper towels and a handful of ice pops. He hands an ice pop to Chase.

"We're going to hold this over your nose." Chase presses the ice pop over the top of Hope's nose while holding the napkin underneath.

"Ice pops?" Bradyen asks.

"Ice pops make everything better." Cooper hands one to both Brayden and Charlotte. "I've got one for you too, Hope." Cooper tells the little girl.

Hope's sweet smile guts him. He knows his granddaughter is trying her best to put on a brave face.

"Thatta girl." Charlotte tells her. "You're as tough as they come."

Chase pulls the paper towel away from Hope's nose. "Look at that. It worked. The bleeding stopped."

"Thank you." Hope says, softly.

"That child just melts my heart." Charlotte tells Cooper.

Cooper hands Hope her ice pop. "I've got your favorite flavor…orange."

"Thank you, grandpa." Hope says, again, in a soft voice.

"You don't have to thank me. That's what grandpa's are for... to spoil their grandchildren."

"So, does anyone still want to fly this thing?" Chase looks at the kids.

The kids both shake their heads no.

"Then, _I'll_ fly it." Charlotte announces.

"Just don't let it land on my head." Cooper teases.

"C'mon, you big goof." Charlotte pulls Cooper a safe distance away from the others so there are no more accidents.

"You really want to fly that thing?" Cooper asks.

"It's like getting back on the horse that threw ya'." Charlotte explains. "I don't want the kids to be afraid of it, 'specially since it was a gift from Chase to Brayden."

"Do you know how to operate it?" Cooper asks.

"Are you kiddin' me?" Charlotte smirks. "Did you forget I have two younger brothers and three sons?"

"Oh yeah," Cooper relinquishes. "You can probably fly that thing better than me."

"Better believe it." Charlotte lets the toy helicopter soar up into the sky.

"Wow!" Brayden shouts. "Grandma is good at that."

Hope runs up to Charlotte and tugs on her shirt. "Can I have another turn?"

Charlotte glances down at the little girl. "Ya' sure ya wanna try this again?"

"Yesh." Hope nods.

"Me too!" Brayden jumps up and down watching Charlotte fly his toy.

"Okay." Charlotte agrees. "But y'all need to steer clear of it when it's flyin'. Never know if it's gonna drop out of the sky on ya'."

"Okay Grandma!" Brayden shouts. "We promise!"

Chase and Cooper take a seat on the bench. "Momma is good with them." Chase tells Cooper as he watches Charlotte instruct the kids how to play safely with the flying toy.

Cooper shakes his head before responding. "The woman is good at everything she does. I can't beat her at anything."

Chase laughs. "Seriously dad?"

"Well, okay. I can beat her at basketball but that's only because she's a lot shorter than me."

"Ha, ha." Chase laughs. "I bet if momma wanted to she could kick your butt at basketball."

"Well, I'm glad she doesn't want to or there would be nothing I could do better than her."

"What about cooking?" Chase teases. "You were the cook in our house when we were growing up while momma worked."

Cooper nods. "That's true but now that your mother's retired she's surpassing me in her cooking skills too. She can do whatever she sets her mind to."

Chase nods. He doesn't say it out loud but he hopes that he and Tess will be as happy and in love as his parents are at their age.

"Did you know there was a time when your mother didn't like kids?" Cooper asks Chase. "She wanted nothing to do with them. She thought they were little snot machines."

"Yes, dad, you told me that already."

Cooper shakes his head. "I just can't believe how a woman who was so adamant that she didn't want kids could be such an amazing mother and grandmother."

"Lucky she changed her mind or I wouldn't be here and neither would Brayden or Grace Anne…-" Chase replies.

Charlotte strolls over to them. "What are my handsome fellas talkin' about?"

"Nothing." Cooper shrugs.

"Nothing?" Charlotte raises her eyebrows.

"Okay." Cooper concedes. "We were talking about you."

"What were you sayin'?" Charlotte folds her arms against her chest waiting for the answer.

"We were talking about how amazing and wonderful you are."

"Tell me the truth." Charlotte narrows her eyes at Cooper.

"We really were." Chase tells his momma. "Dad was talking about how you didn't want kids when you first got married and how you turned out to be an amazing mother and grandmother."

"Really?" Charlotte looks at Cooper.

"Really." Cooper smacks his lips into a smile.

"Thank you." Charlotte sits down on the bench, squeezing between Chase and Cooper.

"No. Thank you." Cooper says. "I can't imagine our life if we didn't have the kids."

Charlotte nods. "I wonder what we would be doing now if that were the case."

"Not this." Cooper watches his grandchildren play.

"This is exactly where I want to be." Charlotte squeezes Cooper's knee offering him a small smile.

"Me too." Cooper reaches over to squeeze his wife's knee.

* * *

_**Reviews are the best!**_


	117. Chapter 117

_**CHAPTER 117**_

* * *

The sun's shining warm and bright, Charlotte and Cooper watch Charley pitch a foul ball to the batter in his little league game. "Atta boy! Strike him out!" Cooper calls out from the bleachers. "One more strike and he's out!"

Charlotte nudges Cooper's leg. "Pipe, down."

"What?" Cooper groans, playfully. "I'm giving my grandson encouragement." Cooper stands up, clapping hard after Charley strikes the batter out.

"And that's someone else's kid who just struck out that you're clapping about." Charlotte points out.

"It's a game, chief. Someone _has_ to lose." Cooper protests.

"Try to control yourself, Coop. They're second graders." Charlotte watches Andie walk back up the bleachers carrying baby Jack. "Where's Hope and Brayden?" Charlotte asks Andie.

"Huh?" Andie asks dumbfounded. "I thought you were watching them. I was in the bathroom changing Jack's diaper."

Cooper chimes in. "Hope said she wanted to go with you, they followed you."

Andie turns her head to survey the baseball field area. "I don't see them."

Charlotte rises up from her bleacher bench. "They probably went to the playground. I'll go look."

Cooper stands up too. "I'll come. Charley's done pitching." He tells Andie. "He struck two kids out."

"That's my boy!" Andie boasts. "Nicky taught him to throw. The boy is a natural."

"He's a star." Cooper calls back as he follows Charlotte to the playground area.

"Hope! Brayden!" Cooper calls out while Charlotte searches in the slide tube.

"They're not here, Coop!" Charlotte blurts with a just a tad bit of worry in her voice.

Cooper scans the playground before asking an older woman. "Did you see a little boy and a little girl about four-years-old playing here?"

Charlotte adds. "The little girl is wearing a pink romper and the boy had on a blue striped shirt."

"No, sorry, but I just got here." The woman tells them.

"Good Lord." Charlotte lets out a sigh. "We lost the kids. How are we supposed to call Tess and say we lost Brayden."

"They're not lost." Cooper scans the area again with his eyes.

"Well, where are they." Charlotte asks.

"They couldn't have got too far." Cooper responds.

A little girl about nine years-old tells them. "I saw them."

"You did?" Charlotte asks.

"Yeah, they went with a lady to buy ice cream from the ice cream truck over there." The girl points to the ice cream truck in the parking lot about fifty feet away.

"Thank you." Cooper says as he escorts Charlotte to the parking lot, walking briskly.

"They know better than to walk off with a stranger." Charlotte tells Cooper.

"Ice cream can be tempting." Cooper suggests.

"Hope knows not to go with a stranger. I've told her, Andie's told her, Nicky's told her..."

They walk briskly to the parking lot until they spot Brayden and Hope sitting in the grass at the edge of the parking lot eating their character ice pops.

"Where did you get those?" Cooper asks the kids.

"A nice lady bought it for us." Brayden licks his ice pop.

"You don't accept food from strangers." Charlotte starts to lecture before Hope interrupts. "It's not a stranger, it's Clove's grandma."

"Where is she?" Charlotte asks.

Hope points. "She went back to the ice cream truck cuz Clove dropped her ice pop and was crying."

Charlotte and Cooper look towards the ice cream truck. Cooper squints his eyes and calls out "Vi!"

Violet walks towards them, holding Clove's hand. "I hope Charlotte doesn't mind. Clove wanted ice cream so I got some for your grandchildren too."

"No, that's fine." Cooper hugs Violet. "Thank you." Cooper and Violet walk back towards Charlotte and the kids.

"I see you met Brayden." Cooper takes a lick of Violet's vanilla cone.

"Get your own, Coop." Charlotte grimaces as she watches her husband lick Violet's ice cream cone.

Violet smiles. "It's fine. I didn't want to finish it anyway. Here, you might as well take it." Violet hands over her ice cream cone.

Charlotte turns to the children. "Did y'all say thank you to Dr. Turner for the ice pops?"

"They did." Violet nods. "They were both polite."

Charlotte looks at Cooper. "And did you say thank you to Dr. Turner for the ice cream too?"

Cooper makes a little snarl with his nose before pressing the ice cream cone up to Charlotte's mouth. Charlotte licks it off of her lips.

"Can we go back to the playground now?" Brayden asks.

"After your done with your ice pops we can go." Charlotte instructs.

"He's a handsome boy, congratulations." Violet tells them both.

"We're very blessed." Charlotte looks at her grandchildren.

"How are you doing?" Cooper asks Violet.

Violet wiggles her foot. "I'm keeping busy. I've been baby-sitting for Rosie and Clove when I can and I'm planning on spending some time up in New Hampshire at the second house. You're welcome to visit."

Charlotte nods. "I think we'll take you up on that. I hear the leaves are pretty there in the fall."

"My favorite time of the year up there." Violet agrees. "So, you'll come?"

Cooper stretches his arms out wide. "Yep, we're retired folk now, we're free."

"What about all of your grandchildren?"

"They've got parents." Charlotte answers abruptly. "I love 'em all but Coop and I can use a get-away."

"How's Drew doing…" Violet hesitates. "With the new baby coming?"

Charlotte answers, "Ruby's gone back to Australia with her mom to have the baby. She's gonna live there for the time bein'."

"Will Drew get to see the baby then?" Violet asks.

"He'll visit and she'll visit, we'll take it one step ar a time." Charlotte wipes Hope's hands and face with a napkin.

"There's still a chance Ruby may give the baby up, she's undecided." Cooper tells.

Charlotte adds. "I'm bettin' she'll keep it. That girl is attached already."

Cooper shrugs. "The best thing would be to give the baby up to a couple who are ready for a family and will love it like their own, like my parents did for me."

Charlotte looks over at him. "It's not your decision, Coop."

"Obviously." Cooper grunts.

Violet changes the subject. "I hear that Chase and Tess back together?"

Charlotte wipes up Brayden's face now. "They are. Chase asked Tess to marry him again."

"That's great." Violet nods. "Another Freedman wedding coming up."

"Yeah," Cooper says. "They want to get married before the Holidays."

"Why so fast?" Violet wipes Clove's mouth.

"They've waited years for this, they just want to get on with their lives." Charlotte tells her.

"I'm happy for them." Violet watches Clove run for the swings with Brayden and Hope.

"I won't be surprised if we have another grandchild from them in the new year." Cooper stretches his arm.

"I'll be more surprised if we don't" Charlotte agrees.

"What about Noah and Marley?" Violet asks. "When will they give you a grandchild?"

"I think they're waiting until they're finished with their residencies to start a family." Charlotte sits down on the bench to watch the kids play.

Violet sits next to her. "How many grandchildren do you have now?"

"Seven." Charlotte answers, quickly "And eight if Ruby keeps the baby."

"Wow," Violet shakes her head. "Who'da thought Charlotte King would have four children and eight grandchildren one day?"

Charlotte chuckles. "Who'da thought I'd marry Cooper Freedman?"

"Hey!" Cooper protests, playfully.

"I used to call you Cruella." Violet tells Charlotte.

"I know." Charlotte nods.

Violet looks at Cooper. "You told her?"

Cooper answers, animatedly. "She heard you. You weren't exactly quiet about it."

"Why did you call me Cruella?" Charlotte asks, seriously.

Violet searches Charlotte's face before answering, she realizes Charlotte's serious. "Well, you had a way." Violet explains. "You gave off this viper…" Violet stutters, trying to explain gently. "You ... you... weren't nice...You were mean."

"I wasn't mean...I was nice." Charlotte defends. "I was the Chief of Staff. I _had_ to play sheriff when you people put me in that position which you did a lot and I didn't like it either."

Cooper shakes his head. "But you were like that all the time, Chief, not just at St. Ambrose. You could be…" Cooper grits his teeth. "Cruella."

Charlotte shoots Cooper a playful glare.

Violet nods. "But you softened. It took a while but you became human."

"After she met me." Cooper boasts.

"After I had the kids." Charlotte corrects.

"No." Violet shakes her head. "I mean you did become softer after you had kids but you softened before that."

Cooper nods. "Yeah, after the…-"

"Don't say it." Charlotte interrupts. "We're at a playground. This isn't the time."

Cooper continues. "I'm just saying you started to loosen up and let people in after."

Violet shakes her head. "I noticed it even before that."

"Thank you." Charlotte looks at Violet.

Violet talks. "I noticed a big change after you and Cooper broke up awhen you told him you were married before."

Cooper screws up his face. "You noticed it then?"

"Yep." Violet nods. "That's when I first noticed the vulnerable, human side to Cruella, excuse me…I meant the vulnerable side to you, Charlotte. That's why I offered to let you move in with me." Violet looks at Charlotte. "You were sad and lonely just like I was. I realized we weren't so different. We were exactly the same."

"I remember that." Cooper nods. "I wasn't too happy Charlotte moving in with _my _best friend."

Violet responds. "Charlotte needed a friend. She needed me more than you at the time."

Charlotte looks at Cooper now. "If I recall, the name Cruella suited you better at the time."

"I'm sorry." Cooper looks at the ground. "I'm not proud of the way I treated you _but_ in my defense I didn't know why you didn't want to talk about your past...because you didn't tell me."

Violet offers. "That's the past. You two have four amazing children and all these grandchildren." Violet watches the kids play.

Charlotte and Cooper look at each other and instinctively hug. "I love you," Charlotte whispers in Cooper's ear.

"I love you more." He gives her a soft kiss on the lips.

"Not possible."." Charlotte tells him.

"Let's go to Hawaii." Cooper raises his eyebrows up and down. "Let's book our second honeymoon before Chase and Tess get married and before anyone asks us to babysit or gets sick or...-"

"I'll call the travel agent as soon as we get home." Charlotte smirks.

"I love you." Charlotte tells him again as she grabs his hand and squeezes it tight. "I wouldn't change a thing."

"Me too." Cooper holds her hand.

They spend the rest of the afternoon playing with their grandchildren.

* * *

_**The End! (**Almost! There will be an epilogue which takes place a few years into the future)_

**_HAPPY THANKSGIVING _**

_to my American readers, and I hope ALL my readers have a great day =)_


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